He's Out of My League
by americanbread
Summary: How much are you willing to do to get the one you love? In this story, Max is willing to do everything to get Fang's attention. Loosely based on the Thai film "A Little Thing Called Love". AH; FAX.
1. He's Out of My League

**A/N: I know this isn't really my most original idea, but I just love both the series and the film that I wanted to write this! For those who haven't watched "A Little Thing Called Love" yet, you should really watch it. You will be able to relate to the characters =D. And I should also warn you that Max might be a little OOC here.**

**DISCLAIMER: The day I own MR will be the day Fang will not be fangalicious anymore. Oh, and I don't own "A Little Thing Called Love", either.**

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><p>Don't you love the idea of love?<p>

I don't, really. But I have to admit, being in love sort of feels awesome.

I'm Max. I'm fifteen, and I'm not really what you call the most attractive person on the face of the planet. In fact, I wouldn't be able to qualify as attractive, even if I tried. Lately, I've been told that my eyes are the color of unbarfed chocolates. My skin is tan, but not in a pretty tone that would match me. My hair is filled with sun streaks from too much time outside, and it's in too much of a bad shape that I can't run a comb through it without at least going through a hundred different tangles. I have an athletic figure, which I'm betting will not reveal curves any time later. My mom tells me I'm a late bloomer, but as much as I want to believe her, I don't.

Here I am, my hideous self making my way to Auntie Marie's Café with Ella, Nudge and Angel, my three best friends. Fall foliage surrounds us as our feet crush extra crunchy leaves and our heads dodge the ones making their way down. Once we arrive, Ella and Angel orders for us and Nudge browses one of the many shelves that line up the place. I saved us a spot in one of the window booths.

So what does this have to do with being in love? Well this is the same spot where I hang out with my friends and wait for _him_. My one true love (Corny, right? Haha).

His name is Nick, but everyone at school calls him Fang, even the teachers. He's not exactly the hottest guy in our school, but he is, in my book. He's slightly taller than my 5"8 and has smooth, tan skin, and dark hair that sometimes covers one of his eyes which are just as dark. Some call him emo, but just because he wears black ensembles doesn't mean he is. Or so, I presume. I don't talk to him much, but I hear he's not much of a conversationalist, anyway. He's a musician though. He plays a mean harmonica, and a bazillion other instruments. He could be a one-man orchestra, if he could play all of them at the same time. I've seen him play them all during Music class, the only one I share with him.

Well, why am I waiting for him here, you ask? If you say that this is the place he regularly hangs out then you're wrong. Maybe not, but I don't know for sure. But the real reason is that there was one time I was from a cousin's house, and I bumped into him on the way here. When I asked him where he was going, he told me that he was actually making his way home. So I've been spending as much time as I could in this same spot, watching him walk past the window. Occasionally we see each other, but that was the only reaction I could get. It was better than nothing anyway.

"Max, why are you drooling at that window? _Again?_" Angel asked as she put down two lattes on the table; one for her, one for me.

I looked at her in shock and hurriedly checked for any signs of saliva on my chin. None, which was a good thing. "Sorry," I told her. "I was pretty bored."

"That doesn't really explain it, since it's probably the twentieth time you've done that." Nudge said as she and Ella sat down on the other side of the booth, paperbacks and espressos in hand. "Come on, is there any hot guy around here you haven't told us about?"

"There's none, Nudge." I said rolling my eyes. I wasn't really in the mood to tell her about Fang. She would just pounce on me and give me a total emo-makeover and then say how cute the two of us would look together.

"Well, why don't you try search for something at the shelves? I saw a couple of new titles today."

"No, thank you." I said taking a sip of my crappy, but warm beverage. The lattes here usually don't taste bad, so they must've had a new employee. "Ms. Sovelle is already putting the whole English class through hell."

We laughed, and I was about to say something else, when, finally, I saw _him_.

Fang was in his usual outfit, which consisted of a black shirt with his dark leather jacket worn over it, and some dark jeans. His black Converse were a little worn out, and so was his backpack (if you can't guess the color, then reread the story) which was slung over one shoulder. The afternoon sun shone on him, and I willed for him to turn around and look at me. He walked past the window, looking straight ahead. I mentally sighed.

"Hey, wasn't that Fang?" I heard Ella ask. "Isn't he the emo dude?"

I was about to jump to his defense when thankfully, Nudge and her mouth cut in. "I don't know. Sandy Rye tells me he's not really emo, but emo people always wear black, right? Maybe he's punk, but he doesn't even look anything like punk, even the clothes. What if he's, like, some spy and he's spying on the cool kids because some say they do drugs and he dressed up as an emo so people won't talk to him? Or maybe he's one of-"

Nudge's never-ending list of theories was stopped by Ella's hand, which she thoughtfully slapped on her mouth. All of us gave an involuntary sigh of relief.

"I think Max likes Fang." Angel said. If I were drinking anything, then I might've spat it out onto Ella, who was sitting across me, removing her hand from Nudge's mouth and wiping it with a tissue.

"You're kidding me, right?" I asked, trying to keep my voice level. I tried to hide the fact that I was blushing by taking another sip of coffee.

"No wonder you wanted to go here!" Ella exclaimed. "How long have you been stalking him, anyway?"

Thankfully, I already swallowed my current ration of coffee before I could spit it out in her face. "Me? Stalking him? Yeah right."

"Why not? He seems pretty hot." Nudge said, resting her head against her hands. "And by going here, you could both hang out with us and stalk him."

"Come on! Just because I haven't been dating anyone my whole life doesn't mean I'd be willing to date some emo guy across the street!" It was true. Nudge said I belong to the NBOBs (No Boyfriend Since Birth). Besides, Fang wasn't emo, right? And there were no emo guys across the street, since his house was a couple more blocks over (No, I did not stalk him; he told me).

"Well what are your standards, anyway?" Angel asked. "For all we know, someone out there might be the perfect guy that goes with your rules."

I shrugged. Fang was the only boy I ever liked. And I was too distracted by home and school to make up any sort of standards.

"Well, I think you look good with the emo thing," Nudge said. "Why not try it for tomorrow?"

"Nudge, I don't like Fang." I said. "And even if I did, I wouldn't be all emo just to get his attention."

"Aha! That's one standard," Ella said, and Nudge and Angel nodded in agreement.

"Well, don't you, like, always have to be yourself when around guys?" Angel pointed out.

No matter how much I tried to make them stop, the three of them continued talking about Fang and how I liked him (which I of course, kept on denying), and what they were planning to do to have him get my attention. But no matter how hard they tried, or how hard _I _tried, that was never going to happen.

Ever since I saw him walk across the hallway and made eye contact, I know that I wouldn't be with him. Whether I was emo or not, whether he was popular or a loner, Fang would still be out of my league.

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><p><strong>AN: I appreciate any form of criticism ! Do you think the chapter was bad? Do you think you have a better title for my story (because I suck at titles)? Do you think that Max was too OOC? Review =D! In the meantime, um, want some cookies?**


	2. Dad

**A/N: First of all, thank you for everyone who reviewed or added my story to their subscriptions. I was like ZOMG when I checked my email:**

**Zezemi**** - thanks for the commenting on the grammar. Microsoft Word does a lot of things ;D. And I guess having an English teacher that makes you write a lot of essays does that, too.**

**Xx-ThisSucks-xX**

**Paper Aeroplanes**

**Jezebel Strike**

**20 Toes**

**PEACELOVINGIRL**

**MaximumRideFanAddict**** - I know, title-making is definitely not one of my strengths. Any suggestions? IDK why seven is lucky though.**

**.Midnight**

**XxDDxX ****- Max is really attractive there, but she's either a bit insecure about herself or oblivious to that fact. I will try not to make Max OOC in the next chapter, though I had to do this one so my story could work.**

**DISCLAIMER: "Mine" is not really something I use to describe MR.**

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><p>"Mom, I'm home!" I said, closing the front door and making my way to the kitchen, where the smell of freshly-baked chocolate chip cookies were making its way to my nose. Ah, Nirvana.<p>

"Just in time, Max." She said as she put a fresh batch of cookies onto a plate. I grabbed one and chewed. Sometimes I wonder how come my mom and I are related, since we don't look alike. Valencia Ride is tall and has fair, white skin that was really smooth. Her shiny, black hair was pulled back. She was still wearing the white lab coat that she wore to work at the local animal shelter (She's a vet, if you hadn't guessed yet!). It sometimes surprises me when random guys asks if my "sister" is still single, since we don't have anything in common when it comes to looks, although Angel insists that I have her eyes. My mom, with eyes the color of unbarfed chocolates? No way.

"What do you think?" she asked almost nervously.

"It's always great, mom!" my 12-year-old brother, the Gasman (we call him that for a reason you might not want to know) said as he entered the kitchen, our dog, Total following closely behind. He grabbed a cookie and ate it in one bite.

"Pig," I teased. He glared at me before grabbing a couple more cookies then leaving, Total at his heels.

"How was school?" She asked.

I shrugged, and then grabbed another cookie. "Okay, I guess." My mom is pretty and can cook. I'm hideous and can make any meal explode, even if I follow the instructions.

She instantly read my face. "I told you, honey, you're just a late bloomer." She said, setting down a glass of milk in front of me.

"I know mom." I replied. "But it is sort of hard to believe."

She nodded. "I know. But you're still pretty, no matter what."

I almost snorted. Me? Pretty? Yeah, right. I'm pretty, and you could go to the sun without burning if you went there at night.

"I should really have the girls over sometime," I said, reaching for what might be my tenth cookie. "I bet they miss these."

My mom grinned, and then headed for the sink to start cleaning up.

"Mom, when is dad coming back?" I asked out of the blue.

My dad, Jeb Ride, is a scientist. He's working across the Atlantic, for some fancy cosmetics company over at Paris. I got more of his genes, although I didn't get the good-in-Math-and-Science one. The last time I saw him in person was seven years ago. Nowadays we Skype each other at least once a week, where he helps me with my homework to make up for lost bonding time. He does the same thing with Gazzy, too.

She turned off the faucet and leaned against the counter top. "I don't really know, Max. But I know that he does want to go back here and that he misses all of us. He just wants a good future for both of you, don't you know that?"

"Well, he's a scientist. He could get a job here that was just as high-paying. Or maybe he could work for the American branch of that company."

Mom returned to her dishes. "The pay is higher there, since it's the main branch. And he's one of his department's top employees. I think he's about to get a promotion, and that might not work if he switches to the American branch on his own."

My mom made sense, I had to admit. "But what about Gazzy? The kid needs a father figure if he's going to be a man someday."

"We have Skype. Your dad will be always there for Gazzy, even if not in person."

_And even if he has a ten-hour shift before that so we have a calling schedule. _I mentally added. I wasn't really mad at my dad, I just missed him. But Paris was six, maybe seven or eight hours ahead of us? It was hard to call without either of us being tired and international calls on my cellphone cost a lot. He was too busy to check his emails, or to even write letters. So communication was limited.

"I don't know; I just miss dad a lot. Seven years is a pretty long time. Don't you miss him too?"

She sighed "I do. Always."

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><p>"How was school, kiddo?" Dad asked, the screen slightly shifting so I could get a better view of him.<p>

It was almost ten in the evening here. But it was already around 5AM the next day in Paris. We were once again in another Skype call, and from his expression on the screen. I could tell he was pretty psyched to talk to me.

I shrugged. "Fine, I guess. Does having your English teacher make you read all one-thousand-plus pages of _Gone with the Wind_ okay?"

He laughed. "Don't worry. I think the movie has enough information for you, though it's pretty long, too. How's the Gasman, by the way?"

"Pretty good. So far, he hasn't dropped any bombs." I grinned. My brother and his digestive system, well, they sort of clash, which explains his "special talent". Mom even had to ground him so he couldn't release it during the elementary talent show a couple of years ago. "Mom's good too. You just missed a couple of batches a while ago."

"Chocolate chip?" he asked.

"Why wouldn't it be?" I replied and we laughed.

"Well, how's life in general? You still hang out with the Ella, Nudge, and Angel?"

"As usual. Nothing much changed in them, although I swear Nudge is even more obsessed with fashion and making me over."

He smiled. "You could use one. It would be nice to see something change in you, at least. Not that anything needs changing."

I groaned, and I heard him chuckle.

"So how's your love life?" He asked. "Any guy in particular?"

I groaned again. "Da-ad."

"Come on, Max. You're already a teenager. I wouldn't be mad at you if you liked someone, it's natural."

It was sort of true. And there were a lot of times I told dad a couple of secrets that my friends didn't know. "Well," I said, making my voice lower, in case Gazzy heard. "There is this one guy in my Music class."

"Go on," he urged.

"Some people say he's emo because he's always in black, but I don't think he is. More like-"

"Shy?" He interrupted, and I nodded.

"He plays a lot of instruments. And he lives somewhere in Jamie's neighborhood." I said, referring to my cousin that knew his family. "Of course, she doesn't know about what I feel for him."

Dad smiled. "He sounds like a good guy."

"Yeah, but, well... He's totally out of my league."

"Why would he be?"

"Well, look at me. I'm not exactly the type that guys go all crazy about. And it's not like he knows me."

"Then maybe he'll like you just for who you are. And make him know you better. He's in one of your classes, so it's not that hard."

I smiled. "You're right." Instantly, my mind turned on and started brainstorming.

"Sleep through it, Max." Dad said, reading my expression. "I hear you've been sleep deprived these days. Not thinking of him too much, I hope?"

I laughed. "No, dad. And yeah, you're right. I should get some sleep. Goodnight, dad."

"Goodnight, Max." He said, and I reluctantly ended the call.

Dad was right, actually. It was already close to eleven, and I was feeling pretty tired. I changed in a tank top and some comfy pajama pants. Then I turned off the lights, shut my eyes, and willed myself to sleep and think of a plan. Getting to know him better was worth a shot.

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><p><strong>AN: I have to notify you guys that I will be gone for two days, but I might be able to update tomorrow if we don't leave early. Do you think my chapters are still too short? Do you think most of it are just fillers (because they look like they are to me, I guess)? Do you have questions about the chapter? Review =D**


	3. Edible Art?

**A/N: Thanks again to the replies. I just woke up (our time zone is +8 GMT, so I think that's +16 PST) and since we're not leaving until after lunch, I decided to update! And I also have to tell you that my trip might be three days instead of two. I will keep writing while I'm gone though.**

**Anyway, thanks once again for the reviews:**

**No one special**

**whocares1313**

**Night Wolf - Sorry. Right now, I'll settle with the soft side, but I am planning on showing her BAness. Because Fang loooooooves her BAness (Right?)**

**Xx-ThisSucks-xX - I go to my mom for advice too. Sometimes I ask my dad, but the last thing I remembered asking him how to find the domain and range.**

**Paper Aeroplanes - There will be more, I promise =D**

**PEACELOVINGIRL**

**XxDDxX**

**DISCLAIMER: I could go to the airport at night, pretend all airplanes I see in the night sky are shooting stars, and wish to own MR, but that will never happen. (The part about owning MR, I mean. Well maybe the part about going to the airport at night, too...)**

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><p>Argh, school. The only reason I was able to get up on my lazy butt was because of Fang. I already had a plan, but I guess it doesn't count. Does planning about planning count?<p>

I showered, and put on my everyday ensemble: a hoodie, some jeans, and my beat-up Converse-One Stars. By some miracle, my hair actually got along with my hairbrush, and I look less hideous by the time I looked in the mirror.

So far, I still didn't have a definite course of action as I walked to the small intersection where I meet Nudge, Ella and Angel everyday so we could walk to school together. Nudge arrived first, followed by Ella and Angel.

"Max, if you're planning to impress Fang, then you should at least wear a skirt." Nudge said.

I snorted. "Me, wear a skirt?" I said as the four of us started walking. "That would just _scare _him and not attract him. And who said anything about impressing Fang, anyway?"

"Come on, Max," Angel said. "We're no mind readers, **(A/N: Haha =D) **but seeing the way you looked at him when he walked past the window, it was pretty obvious you liked him." Nudge and Ella nodded in agreement.

Was it just me, or did my friends talk about my love life yesterday afternoon after I left?

"Fine." I said, and told them everything from seeing Fang in the hallways during the first day of school to my dad's nugget of wisdom on the Skype call last night. Even though it's true that friends keep quiet about your crush, and best friends practically shout it out whenever you're near him, well, they are your best friends for a reason.

"So what are you planning to do?" Ella asked as we arrived at the school courtyard.

"I don't really know. I haven't thought about it." I said as I made my way up the front steps and walked through the doors. "It's not like I talk to him on a regular basis or something?"

"But he did talk to you when you bumped into him, right?" Nudge asked."

I walked up to my locker and opened it. "Well, that was because I practically ran him over. And besides, I was the one who talked to him first."

"Well, why don't you do the same thing?" Angel asked. "Not the running him over part. I mean, about talking to him first."

"Running into him might work, too. I mean it does give her an excuse to talk to him." Nudge added.

"We don't really see each other all the time, and I don't have Music until the day after tomorrow." I spied Nudge's hopeful face at the corner of my eye. "And no, Nudge. I will not allow you to give me a makeover in the meantime."

"One of these days, Maximum. One of these days."

I rolled my eyes as the bell rang, and we all head off to our respective classrooms.

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><p><em>Eric Malkin told me a while ago that Fang transferred from some private school. That doesn't mean he's snobby, right?<em>

I looked at Nudge's note, which she crumpled and tossed in my direction. It was homeroom, and Mr. Onslew was busy checking attendance, so Nudge took the liberty of writing this. Geez, it almost sounded like _she _was the one who had a crush on Fang. I tossed the note back, and while making sure Mr. Onslew wasn't looking in my direction, turned to Nudge who was sitting a couple of seats across and shook my head. She wrote something and then threw it back.

_He also told me that Fang and Tess Giovanni (Your Earth Science partner, right?) are friends, since their dads were best friends back in college._

I nodded, and then shrugged my shoulders, as if to say, _So what?_ She gave me one of her I'm-Just-Trying-To-Help-You-Looks. Then she quickly wrote something and tossed it to me, just as the bell rang. Nudge quickly packed her things and headed out, since she had Mr. Dovensky on her next class, which was almost on the other side of the building, and he was pretty strict about students making it five minutes before the bell. I took more time gathering my things and as I headed to my locker, quickly un-crumpled the note and read her message.

_Max, you know you have to make your move today. Angel and I have a meeting with the Arts Club at Lunch and Ella has to meet with the Student Council. Go talk to him, I bet he'll like you._

Nudge was right. I was going to end up talking to him sooner or later. But the problem was, how? Running into him wasn't really an option, since we don't see each other even if we walked in the same hallways, since they're always filled with students. Besides, Angel told me that I hurt people more when I run into them accidentally-on-purpose.

Walking up to him and straight out talking to him wasn't really going to work, either. He was probably going to sit with Tess and a couple of her friends during Lunch, and let's say I don't have good history with some of them. They'll probably think Fang will be my next "victim" and he'll end up avoiding me. (And in case you're wondering, I DID NOT break any hearts. I wasn't even pretty enough to attract them.)

So how was I going to have him know me better? And how was I going to get to know him better?

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><p>Finally, it was the dreaded Lunch. In efforts to cut down budget, our school had different Lunch schedules per level so they could buy fewer tables. This time, freshmen were walking around in their trays and laughing with their friends as they ate. Me? Not really. As promised, Nudge, Ella, and Angel were at their respective tables, talking with their respective clubs. So that meant I was alone.<p>

So far, there was no sign of Fang. And I had no plan yet. I sighed, and then started humming while arranging my peas into some weird spiral design. I looked at my work, and I sort of felt guilty about wanting to eat it.

I was about to arrange the rest of my food into an awesome masterpiece (that I sooo bet will get me into the Arts Club), when I heard a voice in front of me say, "Edible art?"

I froze in my seat, my fork threatening to slide out of my hand. I knew that voice.

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><p><strong>AN: No animals were harmed in the making of this chapter. Review? And let me know what you think about "Edible art?" HINT: It's from this famous movie, which I have admitted to watching maybe 5 times (3 of them forced, 1 of curiosity, and 1 of boredom). I don't have anything against it, in case you guys are wondering if I'm a hater. Or a big fan.**

**Do you think this chapter was great? Do you think it looked like filler? Do you think it's weird that I ask you questions that I should just ask myself? Review, review, review! =D**


	4. Second Objective

**A/N: I'm back. For those following PST, I was really gone for 2 days (on a different time zone). Once again, thank you for the reviews:**

**PEACELOVINGIRL - I agree with you. Following PST, I posted Chapter 2 around 12AM and Chapter 3 around 8PM.**

**XxDDxX**

**Beeni - Yup. I don't remember what part, but it had something to do with the apple. Right?**

**Paper Aeroplanes - You're not the only one that thinks I write sorta-fillers. A lot of my friends tell me that. But I guess I write like that. You have a point about the attractiveness part. A lot of people feel insecure about their appearances, even if they look fine. As for the makeover, well, that question's going to be answered soon enough.**

**20 Toes - True, true. But it is more awesome to imagine Fang say it =D.**

**aalaal**

**DISCLAIMER: If I owned MR, will the fanfics I write here still be called fanfics?**

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><p>Oh. My. Gosh.<p>

Is it me, or was Fang standing in front of me in one of his black ensembles asking me if I was making edible art?

I think I could die from happiness. And I'm not even that girly.

I looked up at him, his tall figure casting a shadow on me. He ran a hand through his-dare I say it?-_sexy _black hair. I think he might have said something, but I was busy trying to make my cheeks stop flushing.

"Um, Max, right?" He asked.

I looked at him, eyes widened, feigning surprise. "You talk?" I asked, clutching my imaginary string of pearls.

Fang rolled his eyes. He's so hot when he does that. "Haha. So, can I sit here? All of the other seats are taken." He motioned to his lunch tray, which he was holding with one hand.

I shrugged, like Fang was any other boy. Which he certainly was not. "Don't you know I'm Max Ride?" I asked coolly.

He smiled. Not really, but his lip did curl up a centimeter, which I took as a smile. "I don't. Would you care to enlighten me, then?" He asked jokingly.

I rolled my eyes, but moved a couple of inches to make space for him. No, screw that. I moved so that when he sat down, I wouldn't hyperventilate at the closeness and make a fool of myself. There, better.

"So, where's Tess?" I asked, struggling to continue my masterpiece. If I wasn't that focused, I might as well end up making an edible portrait of Fang. Or something close to resembling him.

He pointed to a table of the far end of the hall. "The student council has a meeting today."

I turned to where he was pointing and saw Tess's back, right beside Ella. "Oh, right. My friend Ella's there, too."

And cue awkward silence, along with the Cricket sounds.

"Not much of a talker, huh?" I mumbled, rearranging my peas and eating them.

"Yeah, I prefer writing them down." He said.

I looked up, feigning surprise once again. "Is it me, or did you just talk?" I said. I didn't clutch my imaginary string of pearls this time, though.

He gave me another one of his "smiles" that made my heart flutter. "Yeah, I did just talk. How come Tess's friends are afraid of you anyway?"

So they did warn him about me, which meant he wasn't that afraid. Or was he?

I laughed. "Let's just say I don't have good back history with them. I was a pretty stupid 7th grader back then, anyway."

"Do I want to know about it?" he asked.

"I don't think so. And you might not want to experience it either." I said jokingly.

"Fair enough." He said and went back to eating.

"So, tell me about yourself." I said nonchalantly.

He shrugged. "Nothing much. Transferred from a private school. Play a lot of instruments."

"Yeah, I kind of figured that out during Music."

"Not much a fan of that."

The comment made me stop, some mashed potatoes _en route_ to my mouth. "What do you mean?"

"I prefer not playing in public all the time. Not even at the last school. I'm not really a sucker for attention." He said. "Well, yeah it is awesome to do that, but the attention? I'm not attracted to. I just love music, that's all."

I nodded. "You got that from your parents?"

He shrugged, and I knew it wasn't something he wanted to talk about. "How about you?" He asked.

It was my turn to shrug. "Just your average student."

He raised an eyebrow. "Nothing special?"

"Nope. Nothing."

I felt myself blush, and hurriedly looked away. From the Student Council's table, I saw Ella gave me a thumbs up. Fang didn't notice, since he was busy finishing the rest of his meal.

Well, I did sort of get to know him, right? He prefers writing over talking, isn't an attention seeker, and not one to talk about his parents. And based on his personality, that was already a lot.

That pretty much meant my first objective was done. Now what was I supposed to do next?

"Tell me everything," Ella said as we walked to Algebra, our next class. "I want to know what he told you."

"Um, Ella, isn't that the point of asking me to tell you everything?" I pointed out.

Ella ignored my comment. "Come on, I bet he told you a lot of things."

_Well, three is plural_, I thought. "Not much really. Just that he's more of a writer, he doesn't like attention, and doesn't like to talk about his parents."

"Ooh, I bet you're planning on getting closer to him and 'repairing his tormented soul'." Angel, who was catching up with us, said, making air quotes.

"Very funny, Angel. Well, maybe." I said. "So I got to know him better. Well, what am I supposed to do next?"

"Did he get to know something about you?" Ella asked.

"No."

She smiled. "Then that's your next mission."

I only got lucky when Fang asked to sit with me during lunch. But how was I going to talk to him? And how was I going to tell him more about myself without sounding like some flirt? I mean, I don't look like a flirt, so why would I sound like one?

I seem to be asking a lot of questions today.

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><p>"Where's Nudge?" Angel asked as we walked out of the school. It was 3PM, finally, and we got out of our respective classrooms as fast as we could without getting crushed by the other students who were "yearning to be free", as she puts it.<p>

"She told me she was out near the school theater." I said, craning my neck. We finally found her near the edge of the building, arms waving in our direction. What was that girl planning?

When we reached her, she put a finger to her lips and peeked at the edge, and we followed her lead. Leaning against a wall, was Fang, who was talking on a pay phone. He looked really mad, like he was having a fight with the person on the other end, and I swear he was cussing like a sailor.

Nudge gave me a sympathetic look. But I still hadn't told her about what Fang said during Lunch. What if this was why he didn't want to talk about his parents? I saw Fang let out an exasperated sigh and then hang up. We started to scram, but our plan to get out of sight was interrupted by Brigid Dwyer and her friend, Lissa. They were one of the school's biggest flirts, and I could tell that Fang was their next target. I clenched my fists and slowly took a breath.

If you look up the word _slut(s)_ in the dictionary, you will find a picture of two redheads with large boobs and tiny clothes next to it. Right now, that was what exactly Brigid and Lissa were.

As Fang walked away from the phone, the two started talking to each other like they hung out there all the time and when he was nearer, they started to walk away, and Brigid began to act like she tripped. Fang, being the gentleman he was, caught her just in time and asked her if she was alright.

"I think I sprained it." Brigid said, while gently rubbing her ankle.

Fang helped her to the clinic, and as he passed us, Brigid gave me a look that said, _You snooze, you lose_.

"I wonder why she never thought of joining the theater group." Nudge said, staring daggers at the back of her head.

"What a drama queen," Angel added.

I sighed. This was really going to be tough.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: No episodes of Glee were skipped during the making of this chapter. So what do you think? We're they too OOC? I doubt Lissa and Brigid were. Do you think the chapter title is too lame? Do you think it's still short? Do you think it still sounds like a sorta-filler? Do you think my chosen chapter title was not so creative? Let your voice be hear and review, review, review!**


	5. A Discovery, a Plan, and a Deal

**A/N: READ: While those of you out in the west are starting to enjoy their summer, well, mine is about to end. I have school in a couple of days and I will be really busy, so updates will be posted Fridays-Sundays starting next week. I promise not to abandon this fanfic.**

**So, as usual, I would like to thank the following reviewers:**

**masquerade416 - Can't tell you where, but it is somewhere in Luzon.**

**Paper Aeroplanes**

**Just an Angel of Death**

**..x.**

**Night wolf**

**Chocogirl124**

**roylpain**

**Sierra156**

**P.S. I will try to make the next chapters longer. NOTE: In this story Max is NOT UNATTRACTIVE. Since it's in her point of view, she really is pretty but she thinks she's hideous for common reasons like insecurity/looking at other people who she thinks is prettier and start comparing them to her self. Or stuff like that.**

**DISCLAIMER: Let's just say I **_**wish**_** I owned MR.**

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><p>"What are we going to do?" Nudge asked.<p>

After Nudge, Ella, and Angel ranted about Brigid and Lissa, we all headed back to Auntie Marie's, where we consoled ourselves with books and caffeine (this time, it tasted good).

"How about Chinese Water Torture?" suggested Ella, who was busy reading the back cover of the book she picked out.

"I don't know, that's pretty old." Angel replied.

"Yeah, but it still-"

I cleared my throat, and all three turned to look at me.

"Um, I appreciate your help and all, but you guys don't have any interest in Fang. The relationship type." I said.

"Well, what exactly did you have in mind, Max?" Ella asked.

I shrugged? What was I planning to do to the two redheads? "I don't know. Maybe punch them in the face. Hard."

"Make that extra hard." Nudge added.

Angel turned to look at me. "Max, you don't really sound like you care. It's like you don't mind them displaying their whore-y-ness in front of Fang."

I sighed. "I do mind. But... I mean... look at me." I said, and they did. "And look at those two ditzy redheads. He has testosterone in his body. So who do you think would he like more?"

"Max, if you think you're hideous, then you're wrong." Ella said.

"Yeah. And I'm sure he looks on the inside, based on what you told us." Nudge added. "So, yeah, he doesn't know you. But he doesn't know the redheads, either. For all you know, he might think they both belong to a family who can't afford buying clothes in their own size."

I rolled my eyes. "Fang's not the type to think that of the two, you know."

"We know. Just trying to cheer you up," Angel said. "And speaking of Fang, I see him in 5... 4... 3... 2... 1..."

We tried to act busy, while at the corner of my eye, I saw Fang pass the window. Today he had on a plain black shirt and some dark denim jeans with a different design. His shoes and bag were still in the same beat-up condition. When he walked by, he was looking at the ground like a kid who wanted to avoid the cracks on the sidewalk. Or step on them.

"I wonder who he was talking to on the pay phone." Nudge said.

Oh, right. I recalled the only part of that day where I truly knew him, and saw the other side of him that he didn't like others to see. He didn't want to see anyone at his breaking point. He didn't want to see him when he was truly mad and could hurt someone, even if he didn't mean to.

Now the only question was who or what made him react like that. Even if I didn't like him, I still wanted to find out. But the answer was already in my head.

I wanted to help. I knew what it was like to be him once.

* * *

><p>"Something you want to share, Max?" Jeb asked. Here we were once again, in another Skype call. I don't really know why I called my dad Jeb sometimes, maybe because his name comforted me, or maybe because we were that close. Maybe because he insisted it was okay. Or maybe it was another whole reason. But no matter what I called him, he would still be my father, and I would still miss him.<p>

I hesitated for a moment. "Um, you sure you want to hear? Because..."

"Because of last time?" He asked. I nodded.

"It's okay, Max, just tell me."

So I told everything that happened within the past ten hours. He occasionally nodded and motioned for me to continue, but other than that, I was finished in less than five minutes.

"I mean, I don't want to help him with his problem so I could be closer than him. I just want to help. Even if I didn't like him, or even if he didn't like me back, I'd still want to help him."

I'm not really a saint, never was. Back in the old days, my mom usually forced me to talk with Jeb. We used to fight back then, since I just wanted for him to come home and he wanted to stay there and provide a future for us. We usually had heated debates, and mom always had to be the referee. I don't really know what happened, I just realized one day that I just missed Jeb and I was lucky enough we were still able to talk with him. Or something like that. I apologized to both my parents, and we just seemed to forget it.

Funny how I made it sound so simple. You should have listened to us quarrel. Then you would realize how complicated it was.

"Well, what are you going to do?" He asked, and the question brought me back to reality.

"I don't really know. I do know what I'm going to do, but it's pretty hard to find a good opportunity." I said. "Wait a minute. Um, dad, why are you supporting me? You're supposed to me my _dad_. And I'm like, still fifteen."

"As your dad, I know you'll still be able to think. You have my genes, remember?" He teased.

"Well, what makes you think, I still will be using my brain?" I replied jokingly.

Dad ran a hand through his hair, and I knew it was something he did before he was about to say something important. "I've talked about it with your mom. She already explained it to the Gasman earlier."

I nodded my head, motioning for him to go on.

"We decided that we wanted both of you to go here."

My eyes widened in surprise. "Dad, are you serious? What's the catch?"

"You have to graduate at the top of your class. If you do, I'll pay for your ticket to Paris and you'll go to college here. If Gazzy ends Junior High at the top of his class, he'll get to study high school here."

Well, that wasn't an easy one. I wasn't really smart, so I usually had B's or C's. If I study well, enough, I would sometimes get an A in one or two subjects. But me? Beat all the nerds with their straight A's and 4.0's? Impossible.

"Um, dad, you do know that's impossible for both of us, right?"

He grinned. "Yes. That's why I did it. What were we talking about again?"

Gee, dad, way to change the topic. "Um, you helping me get my classmate's attention when I'm only fifteen?"

"I'm okay with it, as long as he gets through me." He winked. "And you have to tell your mother and me if the two of you get together. And you have to update us about your relationship."

"Wow," was all I could say.

"Well, you seem happier anyway."

"Yeah. But, how am I going to find an opportunity?"

"When is your Music class?"

"The day after tomorrow."

"You already have one. Don't blow it."

We talked some more, and after the call was ended. I changed into my pajamas, lay on the bed, and stared at the ceiling.

I had two missions. Both were hard ones. How was I going to get Fang to know me better? How was I going to graduate at the top of our class when a hundred other people who had higher grades wanted the same thing?

And when was I going to be able to ask myself questions and be able to answer them?

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Okay, I know this wasn't my best chapter, so I apologize for the filler-y-ness I have been giving you so far. But maybe I'll get good inspiration while at school, so you'll never know...**

**No Pop Tarts were left unfinished in the making of this chapter. What do you think of this chapter? Do you think the part about Max and Jeb fighting first is weird, or normal (since they do fight in the books)? Do you think my additional information on Fang's character was too OOC? Review and let me know what you think! =D**


	6. Guitars and Texts

**A/N: Thanks to JealousMindsThinkAlike and I Hate Jam for the reviews. I was rushing a bit when I posted this, so I didn't get to double check the chapter. I hope you enjoy it, though!**

**NOTE: To be clear, the story started on a Tuesday, so that would mean that Chapters 1-2 was on Tuesday and Chapters 3-5 was on Wednesday. I already skipped Thursday, so the setting of this chapter is on a Friday, aka the day Max and Fang have Music together.**

**DISCLAIMER: Although I don't like reminding myself, I still have to say that MR is not mine.**

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><p>Here we were, once again at Auntie Marie's after class. But this time, we were not talking over the taste of espressos and lattes on our tongues or the rustle of the pages of an old classic found in the café. We were just sitting there, staring at each other.<p>

Well, not really. I was just sitting there looking at the wooden table which had assorted carvings left by costumers over the years. Nudge, Ella, and Angel were just sitting there, staring at me.

"Guys, you know we don't have all day." I said.

Nudge threw her hands in the air, her gaze still fixed on me. "That's the point, Max! You didn't tell us what happened. So spill."

I looked down and started tracing a drawing of a flower, which was carved with a pen, with my pinky, like it was the hardest thing to do and I had to concentrate. "You know what happened."

"Um, Max, we don't know what happened. That's why we're asking you." Angel said.

"Just tell us, Max!" Nudge added. "Did the redheads cut class to watch him or something? Did you finally get to punch them? Did, he at least know one more thing about you? Or did he try to brush you off when you started talking to him? Did he tell you something else about him? Has he even befriended you on facebook?"

I covered my ears with my hands. "Stop Nudge! Before my ears start to bleed."

"Then tell us what happened." Ella said.

I looked up and stared blankly at the space between Nudge and Angel. "I can't. Because nothing happened."

It took a full minute for that to sink in. Nudge was the first one to react. "What?" She asked.

"Why?" Ella asked.

I shrugged. "It was the same as always. Fang performed, Mr. Dehins discussed. I wasn't sitting beside him; I didn't get to talk to him. The minute the bell rang, he practically ran to the door. Fortunately, there was no sign of the redheads. Unfortunately, I didn't get to punch them. And Nudge, I still say no to the makeover."

Nudge's face fell.

"The thing is, even if I spent every day of school in the same rooms he was in, it's not like we're friends or anything like that. The only thing that could help me is either a miracle or a coincidence."

"But isn't that the point of getting him to know you better?" Angel pointed out. "If he knows you, you could be friends. Then that is when you acknowledge each other."

"I can't really do that. It's not like I can say 'Hi, I'm Max. Are you new here?' since it's not the first day. And remember some of Tess's friends?"

They nodded.

"Well, it's not like I could approach him while he was with them. That might just make things worse."

"Doesn't your cousin know his family?" Ella asked.

"_He_ knows. I don't."

"Well what are you going to do?" Nudge asked.

I shrugged helplessly. "I don't know. I still have to think about it.

My dad already had a full slate. My mom was working extra hours, and she doesn't even know about this. My friends were also running out of ideas. The Gasman was still the Gasman, and he was a boy. Not in a-big-brother-"I'll-give-you-advice" sense, but obviously in an I'm-your-annoying-little-brother-that-will-annoy-the-hell-out-of-you kind of way. So it was up to me.

This was really going to take longer to finish.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Sunday<strong>_

All around me, people were making their way to churches, malls, offices, homes, bus stations, wherever. I merged in with the crowd, a hand on the guitar on my back.

First question: Why do I have a guitar? I know how to play, but considering my skills, I'm more of a toddler. I only know a couple of songs which are fortunately not nursery rhymes. The guitar was a gift from my dad a couple of years ago, with him saying something about my IQ. He actually made me take lessons, but since I was still in my rebellious form, I skipped the sessions and my parents decided to quit. Ever since I apologized, my dad keeps on asking me if I want to take lessons again. Instead, I used the internet and gave dad back his "saving it for the kids' future" speech. Nowadays, I've been too busy with school to continue.

Second question: Why do you have your guitar with you? My cousin Jamie asked to borrow it for some gig or whatever. I basically don't do gigs, especially now that I have to raise my grades in order to be with my dad.

Third question: What are you going to do about Fang? I already have that planned. Yesterday, Nudge hacked the school's database for me to look up Fang's address (we swear, we did not change any of our grades). I was planning to drop by the place and maybe ask him to borrow his notes in Music, since we did have a quiz next week. Then I'll find a way to start a conversation about whatever we had in common, which might be easier if he lets me in his room.

Last question: What are you planning to do next? Honestly, I don't know. I haven't had contact with my dad since Wednesday night, and my friends are clueless about this. Plus, it's impossible to plan what's next when you're still not finished with what you're doing.

I walked farther, until I reached the sidewalk by Auntie Marie's. There were less people both inside and outside. When I passed the window booth where we usually sat, I turned to look at it, to see what Fang saw whenever he passed by. I learned that he can actually see my face when I sit in my usual spot without having to turn his head. I wondered if he ever caught me looking at him or saw me blushing. I wondered if he heard our conversations about him whenever he walked by. If he already knew, then how did he react?

I focused back on walking after nearly crashing into a woman walking some big, fluffy dog and checked my phone for any messages. There was one from Nudge, suggesting that we hack the school's database again and get Fang's number, then "mis-text" him. Another one was from my mom, asking me to buy more Coco Puffs on the way home. I replied to Nudge's text, telling her it was weird but I was going to think about it.

In a couple of minutes I was already in Jamie's neighborhood. Kids were busy raking the leaves at their front yard for money. Other kids were either biking or playing with each other. Teens were walking their dogs, and nannies were pushing their strollers. I seemed out of place, with my face and my guitar. While making my way to my cousin's house, I craned my neck to try and look at Fang's house which was a couple of blocks over. It was pretty hard to see with the people and the foliage, so I gave up and kept on walking. Just as I was going to ring the doorbell, my phone vibrated, and I was surprised to see it was Jamie calling.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Max, you there already?" He asked.

"Yeah. Why are you calling me?"

"Alice and I are out." He said, referring to his wife. "Katie has a baby sitter, so you can just leave it there."

"Got it. Bye."

"Bye."

I rang the doorbell, and after a couple of minutes, the door opened, and my five-year-old niece, Katie, gave a little squeal of delight and hugged me.

"Hi, Aunt Max!" She greeted happily.

"Hi, Katie," I said, my hand combing through her curly, brown hair.

"Mommy and daddy are gone," she said as I went inside and closed the door. "Do you want to play with me?"

"Sure, Katie." I said, following her upstairs to their game room. "Is you're babysitter here?"

She nodded, and we went inside where a certain person who was wearing all black was sitting on the floor, texting someone. In other words, Fang was there.

Oh. My. Gosh.

He looked up, and for a second, was surprised to see me.

"Uh, Max?" He asked.

"Yeah." I answered, still in shock.

"You're Jamie's cousin?" I nodded.

He gave me one of his cute, heart-fluttering "smiles". "Cool. I didn't know you could play."

I shrugged, gaining a little more of my Maxness. "I only know a little."

"Well, can I see your guitar?"

I took the guitar out of the case. I didn't really care about the brand, but Ella said it was a Yamaha FG730S and that it was very cool. And seeing the look on Fang's face, I could tell he knew that, too.

"Where'd you get that?" he asked as I put the guitar beside the couch and sat down.

"My dad gave it to me for my birthday."

"Well, aren't you taking lessons?"

I wanted to tell him about my fights with dad, but it didn't seem like the right time, especially when 5-year-old Katie was still here, putting pieces of Lego together. Instead, I shrugged. "It's complicated.

He nodded, and then seemed to think for a moment. "Do you mind if I play?" He asked, and then turned to Katie. "Katie, do you want to hear a song?" She looked up and nodded eagerly. I gave him the guitar, and he dug around his pocket for a pick.

"Are you singing this time?" I teased. Fang didn't usually sing while playing, because most of his performances were concertos.

He shook his head. "Why don't you sing?" He asked in the same tone.

"And make both of you deaf? No way."

He gave me one of his killer smiles, and I hoped my blush didn't show. He then started playing, and I recognized the song as _Breakeven_ by The Scriptand I couldn't help but hum along. He smiled again when he heard me, and I smiled back.

"Wish I had this baby." He muttered while studying the guitar after the song was over.

I shrugged smugly. "Well, that baby's mine."

He chuckled, and I bet 99.9% of the school hadn't heard him do that yet.

The moment was ruined by my phone, which announced that I had a new message. "Oops. My mom just texted." I said waving the phone. "I guess I should go now. Where do I put this?"

"Jamie said to just leave it there." He said, motioning to a corner. I put it there and made my way to the door.

"Bye, I said."

He waved, but it seemed like his mind was on other things. Then he stood up and walked over to me.

"Um, Max?"

"Yeah?"

"You want me to teach you?"

I did a double take. "What?"

"Do you want me to teach you on playing the guitar? You can't waste that." He said, pointing to the instrument.

I shrugged. "Why not? I'll think about it." I replied, trying to keep my voice casual. "Maybe I'll tell you tomorrow." I added, even if I was already reconsidering about Nudge's idea. To my surprise, he pulled out a pen in his pocket, grabbed my palm, and wrote his number on it. I was more shocked at the hand-grabbing/holding than the fact that he wrote his number on my hand rather than asking for my phone and putting it there.

"My number," he said. "Just in case you need it."

I nodded and smiled. "Thanks. Well, I have to go now."

"Sure. Bye"

"Bye."

I hurried outside, trying not to shout in happiness. I grabbed my phone and typed in his number, staring at his handwriting, which was hasty and scrawled. A beautiful mess.

I am so never going to wash my hand again if I can help it.

* * *

><p>"Tell us, Max, tell us what happened." Angel urged me.<p>

"And make it verbatim." Nudge added.

After leaving Jamie's, I went straight to Auntie Marie's and told Nudge, Ella and Angel to come over. How stupid was I? All I needed was the stupid guitar to make a conversation! And all I did instead was stay up all night thinking of ways to talk to him without seeming weird.

"Does this have anything to do with me hacking the database to get his number?" Nudge asked again.

I smiled. "Not anymore." I said, and showed them my hand which had Fang's number on it. The girls, squealed, earning them glances from other customers.

"Come on, Max, tell us." Ella said.

I told them everything, from seeing Fang and hearing him play to him grabbing/holding my hand and writing his number on it. They hung on every word, and if I made the story longer, they might have drooled.

"I didn't say yes on the spot, because that would make me seem weird and have nothing to do with my life." I added.

"Oh my gosh, Max! I am so willing to bet he was flirting with you!" Nudge said, gripping her coffee cup so hard that it looked like it was going to break.

"I don't know," I shrugged. "He was pretty interested in the guitar."

Angel patted my shoulder. "Don't be pessimistic, Max. At least you're going to spend time with him. You're going to say yes, right?"

"Well, that might not be a waste of time." I said. "I'll still get to study, right?"

Nudge nodded; all three were already filled on my dad's promise. "It's not like you'll have to spend a day with him. An hour will be fine."

"And Max, he actually found out something about you." Angel added. "Now you just have to make him know you more and vice versa."

Angel was actually right; he already knew I could play a little guitar and that it was given to me as a gift, even if I wasn't exactly planning on that.

"Text him now, Max." Ella said excitedly.

With my trembling fingers, I tried to type, "Hey, Fang. It's Max. About the lessons, well I could use them." The girls agreed that it had the right casual tone, and I pressed send. After minutes of staring at the phone, he finally replied.

"Read it out loud!" Angel said.

I took a deep breath. "Cool. How about next, next Tuesday, after class? I'm going to be busy in the next coupe of days."

Their eyes widened in excitement. I quickly typed a, "sure" and sent it.

Brigid Dwyer, eat your heart out.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: I made the chapter longer, but it I guess it ended up as a long sorta-filler. But sorta-fillers are better than real fillers, right? I mean, the happenings are going to be connected with the next chapters, so it's better than having no connection to the plot at all. I'm not exactly rushing to tell everything, because the movie's plot was changed a lot in this story.**

**What do you think? Do you think the chapter should be longer, or was the length just right? Do you think Fang babysitting was weird or OOC, or do you think it just shows that he has a sweet side for kids? Do you think my chapter title sucks? Do you think I should make a living writing sorta-fillers for other fanfic writers? Haha, just kidding. So anyway, tell me what you think and review! =D**


	7. Throwing Punches

**A/N: Once again, thank you to:**

**I Hate Jam**

**masquerade416 - don't worry, I don't think that's stalker like. Everyone gets that feeling, sorta like déjà vu.**

**Night Wolf**

**roylpain**

**Paper Aeroplanes - the answer to that will be revealed in the end =D.**

**JealousMindsThinkAlike**

**Sierra156**

**Kimmylovesyou707**

**imagine**

**NOTE: For those who haven't noticed yet, I revised Chapter 6 because I was in a hurry to post it and forgot to change a couple of details. The only changes I made were in the end of the chapter, though, so if you want to, you can read it. But if you don't want to, then READ THIS: instead of Tuesday, I changed the lessons to be NEXT, NEXT TUESDAY which is in 2 weeks. So...**

**DISCLAIMER: The only thing I own here is my FF account and the story's plot. The characters, I do not.**

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><p><em><strong>2 weeks, 2 days later<strong>_

I always knew time was usually slow when you wanted things to be over, and real fast when you want things to be like that for a long time. But I didn't know how true it was until today.

Two weeks. TWO WEEKS. More like two lifetimes. Ever since the text, I've been counting every second remaining until I can be with Fang for more than five minutes. Maybe some of you are still asking, _Why would someone have you wait two weeks? Are they that busy?_ I don't really care about why I had to wait two weeks, but I totally couldn't wait to have some time with Fang, not just in the same room, but talking to each other or sitting beside each other, clear of the redheads or my friends

Speaking of my friends, I looked down at my outfit and mentally groaned. This morning, they got up earlier and went to my house to help me prepare. They even made me wear a _skirt_. Well, a skort, actually, which totally showed off my legs. I had a lot of scars, but they covered it with some sort of concealer. They took away my shirt and hoodie, and replaced it with a white blouse (I refused to wear pink). Instead of having my hair up in a ponytail, they insisted to have my hair down and put on a couple of clips to keep it out of my face. At least they let me keep on my black Converse, since I was in no mood to wear girly shoes. Even if they were flats.

I entered the main building, still conscious about my appearance even if no one was really looking at me. I craned my neck to look for Fang, but even Superman couldn't see a guy wearing all black through these crowded hallways.

"Don't worry, Max, you look fine." Nudge said.

"Um, Nudge, I think you should recall that he's just going to teach me how to play the guitar, not take me out to some fancy place." I shot back. Little did she know I had my backup plan. After class, I was going to change back to my regular clothes, since I knew they were going to keep an eye on me all day.

We split up, and I went to my locker to stash my guitar and my extra clothes. Just as I put my hand on the locker door to close it, I heard someone say, "Get out of the way, freak." And I was pushed causing my forehead hit the side of the door. I winced and put my free hand on the spot where it hit the door; the warm, sticky feeling of blood was there.

I turned around to give the guy a piece of my mind, and saw Dylan. He was a one of the people who thought he was so hot and that everybody wanted him. He was a jerk, a football player, and an actual player. Those who hadn't slept with him yet were the ones considered to be lucky, and those who had were considered victims. Him pushing me totally ticked me off, especially when I already had the makeover bothering me.

"Watch it!" I shouted at him. He turned around, slightly startled, his turquoise eyes meeting mine. Instead, he gave a cocky grin and ran a hand through his hair. Then he walked to me and touched my wound. I shuddered.

"What for?" He asked sweetly.

"For doing this." I said in my _no duh_ voice and pointing to my forehead.

He shrugged. "Head wounds bleed a lot." He said, and closed the locker door. Then he put his hands on either side of my head and leaned forward, causing me to step back and hit the back of my head on the locker. I winced again. Dylan started to move his right hand to the latest injured spot, but I grabbed his wrist.

"Don't touch me." I said, and pushed his hand away

"But, honey, you just touched me." He said in the same sweet voice. A thousand curse words were already in my head and I was in DEFCON mode in no time.

I was about to use my other hand to punch him, when my some miracle, Nudge, who had suddenly appeared as if by magic, pulled me away from him and held my arms back. Dylan flashed his cocky grin, and it made me struggle more and have him meet with my right fist (which, FYI, Gazzy once named Karen for no apparent reason).

"He's not worth it, Max." Nudge whispered. "Stop, before more people notice."

I looked around and noticed that most of the students, who were oblivious to Dylan pushing me, were now looking at both of us, the girls mostly staring daggers at Dylan.

"You got away easy," I said, prying myself from Nudge's grip and walking away. The rest of the students made their way to their respective classrooms, forcing Dylan to move with them.

"Thanks for the help, Nudge." I said, retrieving my handkerchief from my pocket and gently wiping away the blood. "I didn't want to ruin the rest of my outfit." I added jokingly.

She giggled. "You're welcome. Now let's go to the nurse's office to fix that up. Then we can go get your books.

* * *

><p><strong>Fang's POV <strong>(Fan girls scream!)

I put the rest of the books in the locker and grabbed my guitar before I slammed it shut. I promised Max that I would teach her on how to play better, and I told her to meet me by the school's main entrance. The after school crowd already disappeared and those who were left were in club meetings or detention.

Walking down the halls, I took the last one needed to get to the main hallway and through the front doors and saw Dylan and two of his friends ganging up on someone from the Computer Club. He was a year older than me, but he looked weaker. He was clutching his laptop so hard that his knuckles turned white, and slowly raised the computer in front of him like a shield. I heard Dylan and the goon on his left tell him something.

I don't really know what was happening to me. Usually, I walked past, ignoring Dylan and vice versa. Maybe it was adrenaline, or maybe I was just getting tired of his stupid gimmicks. Maybe because I saw how much fear the computer geek had in his eyes as he tried not to cower in Dylan's sight. Before I could talk myself out of it. I kept on walking in their direction until I was a couple of yards away from them.

"Leave him alone." I said. Dylan turned to look at me, slight confusion on his face.

"Or what?" He asked, smirking.

I gulped. "Or I'll beat the hell out of you and your bodyguards."

One of his friends got pissed and took a threatening step forward, but Dylan shoved him back. "I can beat up this guy on my own," he told his friend, and he went back to his original position.

"You wanna fight, emo boy?" He asked, slowly getting into a fighting stance.

_Emo boy?_ I took a few more steps forward until we were practically face-to-face. Though I was three years younger, I was already as tall as him.

I shrugged. "Something like that," I said nonchalantly, and before he could think of a witty comeback, I punched him in the stomach. He doubled over in pain and tried to hit me with his elbow, but I quickly stepped back, grabbed his forearm, and pushed him back with all the strength I had. While Dylan was still regaining his balance, I looked at his victim and told him to run.

I turned back, just in time to see Dylan punch me in the face and pushed me against a wall, grabbing the collar of my shirt. Then he punched me in the stomach, and I winced in pain. For several seconds, he just looked at me, the signature cocky grin on his face. In the background, I heard his friends fall down on the floor with a thud. Did the computer geek hit them with his laptop?

I tried craning my neck to take a look, but Dylan forced me to look back at him. He grinned evilly, and was about to say something when someone tapped him on the shoulder, and his expression went from evil to annoyed and irritated.

He turned around, only to get punched in the face.

* * *

><p><strong>Max's POV<strong>

Where was Fang? And what was taking him so long?

I tapped my fingers nervously on my guitar case. The minute the bell rang, I rushed into the bathroom to change into a hoodie and some jeans and stuffed my former outfit in my bag. Fortunately, Nudge didn't see me so I was safe as I got my guitar and made my way to the main entrance, where he told me he would meet me. So far, he was a no show.

_Relax, _I told myself. _Count to sixty, and if he still doesn't show up, then look for him._

Usually, I waited a couple minutes more, but this was Fang, and I had already been waiting for two weeks to spend time with him. Plus, I still had a math test tomorrow that I had to study for. I took a deep breath and started counting...

Fifty-six, fifty-seven, fifty-eight, fifty-nine, sixty. I glanced at the main hallway; no sign of Fang. I took another deep breath and entered the building. Maybe he was still looking for something in his locker. I remembered it was near the English classroom. I was about to turn to the next hallway leading to the room, when I heard the familiar sound of someone getting hit. I turned on my stealth mode and hid behind a conveniently placed potted plant, peeking through its branches.

_So that's why he wasn't showing up yet._

I stepped away from a potted plant and someone from the Computer Club passed me, hurriedly telling me to help Fang. He was probably Dylan's current victim until Fang stepped in. Good looks, good taste in the music, and stands up for others. What kind of girl wouldn't want someone like that?

I tiptoed to one of Dylan's friends, tapped him in the shoulder, and nailed him with a kick when he turned to look at me. He easily landed on the floor, clutching his crotch.

And that, folks, is why I don't have good history with pretty much half the school. The guy wasn't the first one to get that from me.

The same thing happened with his other friend. Now it was Dylan's turn, and I was so glad I would finally get to do this. Fang is so going to thank me for this later.

I tiptoed behind him, and tapped him on the shoulder, he turned around irritated, but his expression was short-lived when I punched him in the face. Hard. Really hard.

"That's for pushing me and calling me a freak." I told him. "And for hitting on me."

He stepped forward, and I kicked him in the stomach, this time, not as hard.

"Max, he's not worth it," I heard Fang say. He was still leaning against the wall, a hand on the spot where Dylan probably punched him.

I pouted like a little child. "But I was going to do a roundhouse on him."

He gave a little chuckle and shook his head, then picked up his guitar case, which had been left on the floor. "Come on."

I walked up to him. "You're late, you know." I said as we walked out of the building and into the cold, Autumn-soon-to-be-Winter air.

He shrugged, then grinned. I know, right? Fang, grinning? Too bad I didn't have a camera with me. "I got sidetracked," he said, then added, "thanks, by the way."

I smiled. "Don't mention it. It was the least I could do, since you are giving me lessons."

He smiled back, and then frowned. "What happened?" He asked, looking at the bandage on my forehead.

"Dylan." I replied. "The back history made me enjoy punching him."

"So that's why you looked so happy." He said. I tried not to blush.

This was weird. Fang, smiling and talking? What did he eat at lunch?

"So where are we practicing?" I asked.

"Maybe just at the park. You cool with that?"

I looked up. The weather seemed fine. "Sure."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: I wanted to continue this chapter, but I was feeling pretty tired (since it was almost 2AM when I finished this) and I admit to still having no idea what's supposed to happen during their session. If you have a suggestion, then you could put it in a review. I have to admit that this took me longer to write, even if it's easy because Max doesn't have to be OOC here.**

**What do you think? Were you finally happy that the BA Max showed up and punched Dylan (Because I always imagined her doing that while reading FANG and ANGEL)? Or do you think I have a real talent in writing fillers/sorta-fillers? I guarantee that this is related to the plot. Review! =D**


	8. Lessons

**A/N: So far, this was the hardest to write, since I am sort of clueless about guitars. So for the guitar playing folk, please correct me if I get something wrong. I might've asked my sister for help, but she was asleep, and we all know everyone gets grumpy when someone wakes them up in the middle of a REM cycle.**

**Also, if I'm able to finish a chapter tonight, I might be able to post it on Monday, since we only have orientation. IDK if I get to write a new one, though.**

**Lastly, for those in the Philippines, did you watch "A Little Thing Called Love"? It was aired a couple of hours ago, and I didn't really like the voices they used, since some sounded to young and some too old. And they cut several scenes, so I still like watching the original one.**

**Thank You:**

**JealousMindsThinkAlike**

**Nightshroud45**

**Toobusytologin**

**roylpain**

**imagine**

**cindyp2 - I am? Because no one's told me that before...**

**DISCLAIMER: I want to own a pink elephant. And MR. But I can't own both. Plus, I'm running out of creative disclaimers, since I'm not cool enough to have a chat with one of the flock. Are you even reading this?**

* * *

><p>I don't really recall the last time I went to the park. In fact, I don't even remember if I've ever been here before. Or maybe it's just <em>jamais vu<em>. Anyway, I couldn't help admire the trees and their temperate leaves and the assorted flowers that I couldn't name, save for the sunflowers and the daisies. There were even carved out pumpkins on the trails, some even made to look like cartoon characters. And then, there was Fang. He didn't really look at it much, so I guess this was were he usually practiced. I so need to start going here.

We kept on walking, and he led me to a small trail hidden by some bushes. After a couple of minutes, a clearing appeared. It had lush grass and trees all around it, and a large one in the very middle. A sea of leaves was beginning to form. I walked to the middle tree, put my guitar down, and lay on a large pile of foliage. Fang followed suit, only this time he sat down.

"This is so cool." I said, grinning. It was so quiet, that the park and the city seemed miles away.

He leaned back against the trunk. "I found this back when I was a kid. So, am I going to teach you like that?" He asked, getting his guitar out of its case.

I sat up. "Way to ruin the moment, emo boy."

He raised an eyebrow. "Emo boy?" He then looked at my clothes. "Why'd you change, anyway? You looked fine earlier."

Oh my gosh. He actually noticed me in that... skort?

"Didn't want to scare anyone," I replied nonchalantly. "And you're supposed to teach me on guitar playing anyway, not taking me to Olive Garden or something."

"You planned the outfit?" He asked.

"No." I said without missing a beat. "My friends just happened to take over my wardrobe that morning, even if I insisted it wasn't appropriate."

He nodded. "Hm," he said, and I knew there was some unspoken paragraph there.

I retrieved my guitar, and positioned myself so I could be comfortable while playing. "Anyway, let's start."

"Well, what do you know so far?"

"Mainly, several notes." I replied. "I just choose the songs, and if there's one I don't know, I look it up. Other than that, my education isn't that great, since I don't always have time."

"What notes do you know, specifically?"

"A to G, B flat, A minor, B minor D minor, E minor, and F-dash-minor."

He nodded. "That's a lot, already. Give me a song."

"Um, _Out of My League_ by Stephen Speaks?" I suggested. I don't really know why I chose that, albeit it was the first one that came to my head. Was Fang going to be able to find the hidden meaning of my song selection? I hope not.

He skimmed through his notebook, which had a mix of sheet music and written chords and lyrics. "Not here. Do you remember the chords?" He didn't react to my choice, but he was Fang, so it was pretty hard to tell if he knew or not. He lent me a pen, and I wrote down the chords to the song on a blank page of the notebook.

"Do you know how to do tabs?" He asked.

"Huh?"

"Never mind," he said, and started the verse. I followed, and get this: I started to sing! He gave me a small smile and started the song again. I cleared my throat and prepared to sing, even if an angry mob might follow me after hearing my voice, albeit we were far away. I didn't even bother fixing it to a girl version.

_It's her hair and her eyes today that just simply take me away_

_And the feeling that I'm falling further in love makes me shiver, but in a good way_

_All the times I have sat and stared, as she thoughtfully thumbs through her hair_

_And she purses her lips, bats her eyes and she plays with me_

_Sitting there slack-jawed with nothing to say_

_'Cause I love her with all that I am_

_And my voice shakes a long with my hands_

In reality, my voice _was_ starting to shake. If Fang noticed, then he made no reaction and continued playing.

_'Cause she's all that I see and she's all that I need_

_And I'm out of my league once again_

_It's a masterful melody_

_When she calls out my name to me_

_As the world spins around her, she laughs, rolls her eyes_

_And I feel like I'm falling, but it's no surprise_

_'Cause I love her with all that I am_

_And my voice shakes along with my hands_

_'Cause it's frightening to be swimming in this strange sea_

_But I'd rather be here than on land_

_Yes she's all that I see and she's all that I need_

_And I'm out of my league once again._

I motioned for him to stop playing, and took a deep breath. Singing felt good.

He gave me a rare grin. "You're pretty good; you just have to learn more. Actually, you're pretty good at singing, too." He said, and I blushed, not because of the comment, but because of the giver.

"So, how much time do we have left?" I asked, not trying to sound too hopeful.

He looked at his watch. "Well, we have forty-five minutes. I think an hour is enough."

I tapped the surface of my guitar. "Sure. So what are you going to teach me today?"

"Just the other notes you don't know." He replied, and positioned his hand on one of the frets, his fingers on a couple of strings. "So this one's a C-dash-minor." I imitated his position. After checking to see if I did it right, he shifted his hand to another position. "And this one's a G-dash-minor."

Fang spent the next twenty minutes teaching me all the notes and playing a couple of songs with me to help me remember it better (how, I don't really know. He was the one who said that. Not even a squirrel or a bird interrupted us. I was seriously beginning to hyperventilate from spending so much time with him. At one point, we had this conversation:

"Let's try this one," he said, pushing the notebook in my direction. Above the page was the song's title which was _Torn _by Natalie Imbruglia.

"I thought you only listened to emo music." I teased.

He rolled his eyes. "Emo music doesn't always sound good with every instrument."

"So Natalie Imbruglia does?"

"Shut up. Let's just play the song. Are you going to sing?"

"Well, do you want me to?"

He thought for a second, and then shrugged. "Why not?"

I cleared my throat as he started the verse, and I began to sing, but he stopped.

"Don't you have a pick?"

"I lost mine a couple of days ago."

"You want to borrow one? I have an extra."

I nodded, and he gave me the pick he held out his hand to give the pick he was holding. I barely brushed his hand with my fingers when a jolt ran through my hand. We both pulled away.

"Static electricity." I said, shaking my hand a little.

He didn't react much, though he did crack his knuckles, and put the pick in my open palm.

"Thanks," I said. He started playing the verse, and I cleared my throat and began to sing.

_I thought I saw a man brought to life_

_He was warm, he came around like he was dignified_

_He showed me what it was to cry_

_Well you couldn't be that man I adored_

_You don't seem to know, don't seem to care what your heart is for_

_But I don't know him anymore_

_There's nothing where he used to lie_

_My conversation has run dry_

_That's what's going on. nothing's fine I'm torn_

_I'm all out of faith, this is how I feel_

_I'm cold and I am shamed lying naked on the floor_

_Illusion never changed into something real_

_I'm wide awake and I cam see the perfect sky is torn_

_You're a little late, I'm already torn_

_So I guess the fortune teller's right_

_Should have seen just what was there and not some holy light_

_To crawl beneath my veins and now_

_I don't care, I have no luck, I don't miss it all that much_

_There's just so many things that I can't touch, I'm torn_

Just as I was about to start the second chorus, his phone rang, and he quickly put away his guitar and answered it.

"Hello?" He asked. I couldn't make the words, but the person at the other end sure sounded angry. Instantly, his expression went from relaxed to mad in seconds.

"Yes, I will." He said, and hung up.

"Sorry, Max. I have to go." He said, and began to pack up. I'll tell you when I can give you another lesson."

I was about to confront him about the scene near the school theater, but he suddenly stood up, and started to walk away.

"Fang, wait." I said. He stopped, and turned around to face me.

"What?" he asked. He didn't sound angry, but he already began to sound tired and stressed, like he instantly aged after walking a few steps. I suddenly didn't want to confront him. _There's always the next lesson,_ I told myself.

"You forgot your pick." I said, walking up to him and opening my palm so he could get it.

He balled my hand into a fist. "It's okay, you can have it." He said, walking away.

I stared at his back, dumbfounded. Then I looked at the pick. The words, _what we are never changes_ were engraved on it. I flipped it, and on that side were the words, _but who we are keeps on changing_. I looked back at Fang, who was getting farther and farther. Would he still be the same boy standing up for others and offering to expand my education on guitar playing next year? What about the year after? And the year after that?

I shook my head clear of the questions and began to pack up. I put the pick in my wallet, so it wouldn't get lost. I couldn't help but think, should I put it in a glass case and display it in my room?

* * *

><p><em><strong>2 Days Later<strong>_

We headed to the park for my second guitar lesson, which, according to Fang, was teaching me how to read tabs. The clearing still looked the same but there were fewer leaves this time. I shoved several into a pile with my foot and sat down on it. He sat down beside me, which made me hyperventilate for the second time this week, and opened his notebook to show a page with tabs.

Yesterday afternoon, I told the girls about the first lesson. They insisted that I confront him this time. We took a vote, and decided that I should ask him before the lesson, in case another call was going to interrupt.

"Um, Fang?"

"Yeah?" He asked, starting to open his guitar case.

"Who called you yesterday? Just curious."

"My mother." He said without missing a beat.

"Who were you talking to on the phone booth near the theater the day you helped Brigid because she 'sprained her ankle'?" I asked, making air quotes even if he didn't see them.

He looked up, confused. "What? Repeat the question."

"You remember the day you helped Brigid because she sprained her ankle?" He nodded. "Well, before that, I saw you talking on the phone, with your parents, I bet. You looked pretty ticked. Why?"

"What were you doing there?" He asked suspiciously.

_Stalking you. _"I was going to make a call, since I ran out of load." I lied smoothly.

"You don't want to know." He said through gritted teeth.

"But I want to help." I said weakly.

"That's what guidance counselors and therapists are for." he shot back.

"No seriously, Fang, I know what it feels like to be you."

He started to pack up. "No, you don't."

"Fang, listen to me." I said. He got up and started walking away.

He turned around. "Why? What have you got to say?"

I stood up. "I've been through what you're going through now. Trust me Fang, I know-"

"You don't know a thing about me!" He snapped, and started to walk faster.

"I'm sorry," I called out after him, but he was too far to hear it. I sighed, and started to pack up my own things. This was definitely harder than I thought.

* * *

><p>"What am I going to do?" I asked the ceiling.<p>

It was already late in the evening, but I didn't feel like sleeping. A while ago, I called my dad on Skype, and filled him in on what happened this afternoon. According to him, I should at least give him some space for a couple of days. Then I should just wait and see what happens.

I felt really guilty. I mean, I replayed the conversation over and over in my mind, and it just made me feel guiltier every time. He sounded really... hurt? Upset? I don't know. But it sounded along the lines of sad, angry, frustrated, and confused.

Maybe I shouldn't have confronted him.

Dad said that it was typical, since he's still your average teenager, but that didn't make me feel better. I bet he wasn't planning on giving me lessons anymore. It was really stupid of me to say that.

I closed my eyes. Jeb said that sleeping would help get rid off the "unnecessary guilt"...

My phone suddenly interrupted the silence, the tone announcing that I received a new message. I groaned, wondering if it was Nudge suggesting my outfit tomorrow in case we had a sudden lesson.

But no, it was from Fang.

_Listen, I'm sorry for what happened this afternoon. If you're free Saturday afternoon, then maybe we can resume your lesson? Fang._

That was sweet of him. Well, what was I planning, this Saturday? Nada. Well, maybe some homework, but I could just do it on Friday and Sunday, anyways.

_It's okay. I'm free on Saturday, so just give me the time and place. Max._

I pressed SEND and smiled. I was going to be able to sleep after all.

_3PM. If you still can't find your way to the clearing, then meet me at the bench near the trail's entrance._

I put the phone back on the bedside table and closed my eyes. I couldn't wait for Saturday.

* * *

><p><strong>DISCLAIMER: I own neither of the songs used in this chapter.<strong>

**A/N: So, what do you think? Any corrections or suggestions? I confess, I only added the lyrics because I was feeling a little writer's block-y, a little lazy, and a little tired (because I have gone for 5 hours without caffeine). Plus, this wasn't exactly my most creative chapter. Anyway, do you think Max should continue singing in the next few lessons? And what do you think is Fang's real problem is? Review!**


	9. Coincidences

**A/N: I'm back! I'm really sorry that I wasn't able to post last Monday, because of school (the normal kind). All in all, I've had a pretty bad week. Our classroom was at the VERY TOP FLOOR at the VERY END OF THE HALL and to make it worse, it was flooded the next day because of the heavy rain and I was resolved to clean it with four other people with two rags the size of a computer monitor. Then my bag broke, and it was saved by my ID. The flood didn't go away the next day, so we still had to clean it, and my books unexpectedly fell in, though only the edges got wet. Then as I was typing the original draft for this, my USB crashed, bringing down original drafts of this and other fanfics, plus my research for tabs. So I borrowed my sister's USB, and it crashed, too. I know, sucks being me. Sigh.**

**Anyway, I was pretty glad to hear from you guys, and it made me less cranky and more inspired to type. So a big Thank You to:**

**JealousMindsThinkAlike**

**Chocogirl124**

**Paper Aeroplanes**

**Night Wolf**

**roylpain**

**wqueen**

**cindyp2**

**Sierra156**

**A corny joke my classmate made: WTF actually means... Welcome To Facebook =D.**

**DISCLAIMER: There will be a time I will finally own MR. That time is NEVER.**

* * *

><p>"Please tell me you're kidding, Max." Nudge said. The grip she had on her coffee cup was so tight, I was pretty sure she was going to burn herself.<p>

_It's Friday, Friday, we're gonna get down on Friday. Everybody's looking forward to the weekend, weekend. _Unfortunately, that was the only song I knew that matched my current situation. It _was_ Friday, and I was pretty psyched for tomorrow. I was in good mood after thinking that Fang was going to hate/ignore me for the rest of my life. Or something less exaggerated than that.

But apparently, Nudge has other things to worry about than her best friend getting ignored by her alleged soul mate for life.

"What do you mean nothing happened?" Nudge exclaimed as I shook my head. She even threw her hands in the air for emphasis.

"Nudge has a point," Ella said. "I mean, he's giving you guitar lessons. You play the guitar using your _hands_. So how come there has been no recent hand brushing?"

"It's just one lesson." I pointed out. Which made me realize how horrible it was for me to not wait for a couple more weeks to confront him about his parents. "And it's not like I'm a beginner. More like a rookie."

To clarify the previous statement, I actually didn't tell them the part with the static. I mean, I wanted to tell them as soon as he left the clearing, but the girly part in me wanted to keep all the magic to myself. Plus, I'm not taking a risk and have them tease me about static electricity for the rest of the year. Or the rest of my life. Or at least the rest of my high-school life.

"But it still doesn't make sense?" She countered. "I mean, didn't you at least pretend?"

Huh. Never thought of that. I sighed, and took a sip of the already-turning-cold-coffee by the second. "Relax, guys. It's not like that was my last one. And if something's meant to happen, it's going to happen."

Was my hand-brushing-static-electricity-inducing-shindig with Fang meant to happen? Hm...

"Max has a point." Angel said, twisting the straw in her cup of iced tea (she swore not to consume any more caffeine after a horrible incident including a moth, nail polish, and a hardbound copy of _Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets_).

"So what are you planning to do now?" Ella asked.

I shrugged. "Learn. And I might as well be myself. That doesn't include any makeovers." I said, the last part mainly for Nudge. She rolled her eyes.

"What are you really planning to do anyway?" She asked. "Learn, or find a way to confess your undying love for him?"

I shrugged again. "Both. Do you have any alternative plan that does not include spying on us and giggling at exactly the wrong moments and then say something like, 'I was so busy enjoying the sights that I didn't see or realize you guys here,' when you get caught?"

They seemed to think about it for a moment before shaking their heads no.

I leaned back in my seat. "Good."

* * *

><p><em><strong>Saturday<strong>_

Being the paranoid person I am, I arrived at the park fifteen minutes earlier and spent half of the time looking for the real path that lead to it, since there were a lot of branching tails. Seriously, I think it might've helped if the roads were colored and Dora was here teaching me how to say red, blue, yellow, and green in Spanish. By the time I arrived, I was already sweating. It was a good thing Fang hadn't arrived yet, or else it would become a relatively embarrassing scene. I sat down with my back against the trunk and put on my earphones.

Today, I had actually gone out an extra limb and Nudge-i-fied myself, though not thoroughly. I put on the only pair of jeans that I thought didn't make my butt too big, and wore my favorite shirt, a souvenir from a charity event that had made people aware about world hunger. I mean, wouldn't Fang like a compassionate person? I wore the only cardigan I had over it, which was a gift from Nudge.

Now all I had to do was wait. And maybe think of some crappy apology speech while I'm at it.

Ten minutes passed. I wasn't exactly expecting him to arrive on time. I mean, he's Fang. That's seriously what's wrong with girls these days. They're so twisted about finding the perfect man that they don't know he's in front of them, because they don't learn to embrace their mistakes. I would've went on with my speech about the abusive amounts of clichés in chick-flicks, but Fang finally arrived.

Everything might've been in slow motion, but he really was slow. Like, instead of suddenly rushing in, out of breath, and maybe the words, "sorry. I got sidetracked by alpacas disguised as Rebecca Black" he just walked in like I wasn't there. He didn't really say anything, which is typical at him, but I was cool with that.

"Hey," he said, sitting down beside me. If there's a record for the most number of times a person has hyperventilated in a week, I might have already broken that.

I pulled out my earphones and smiled. "Hey, back. Listen, I'm sorry for last time."

He smiled, and not just the weird pulling-up-a-corner-of-his-lips thing he does regularly, but a real smile. I would kill to see him grin. "It's okay. Let's just, um, forget that happened. That cool with you?"

"Yeah." I replied, and got out my guitar, ready to just jam and get over with the semi-soap-opera-scene last week. "What's on today's agenda?"

"Tabs." He said, and took out his notebook, stopping at a particular page. It's actually a lot less complicated than you think."

I looked at the page. It was filled with tablature with lines and numbers and a bunch of curvy symbols. Reading, whether it is words, or notes, or guitar tablature, is not my forte.

"This is a guitar staff," he said, pointing to it with his finger. "So, each line of the staff represents a string. The one on top is the lowest E, and the second one from the bottom is the A. The numbers represent the fret you have to play. So this one tells you to play the d string, second fret."

I nodded, and he helped me practice by playing some of the chords. Next, he showed me how to read chords in a tab, and then we went on to harder stints, like the string bend.

"Do you even _literally_ bend the strings? I asked, as he turned to another page where the numbers on the staff had these weird arrow things beside them.

"Not really. More like push it upward." He said. he put three of his fingers at three random frets on the A string, then played. He exerted force upward, then returned the note to its original pitch.

"Sounds hard," I said, copying his earlier position.

"Let's see you try first."

I mimicked the bend, but it quickly died halfway through.

"Here, let me help you." He said and inched closer. I resumed my earlier position. Then he put his hand on top of mine, and his fingers on top of mine. I could feel myself turning red. He even had his arm over my shoulder! If people really did die from happiness, then I would have. And as I keep telling you, I'm not even that girly.

"The trick is to insert more pressure." He added. "Play it again."

I did, and as I bent the string, he kept his fingers on mine and exerted the same force. The note almost lasted all the way, since it died while I was bringing it back to the original pitch.

"Practice makes perfect." He said, going back to his original position. "Nice shirt by the way."

I blushed modestly. He actually noticed! "Yeah, I went to this event last year, and it was all about letting people know about world hunger. So we just sat there for about twelve hours..."

I was so busy rambling off that I didn't notice Fang take off his hoodie. I turned to look at him and... ZOMG.

He was wearing the same shirt, only this time, it was white against black, which was the opposite of mine.

Coincidence? I think so. Destined? Yes, please.

"You've been there, too?" I asked.

He nodded. "Yeah. I mean, sure, it was twelve hours. But that might've been heaven for a lot of people who haven't eaten for days, you know?"

I nodded, still shocked. He rambled on about the event and world hunger, but I was still in a daze. I mean, he's hot, he can play the guitar, he defends the weak, and he's compassionate about others. He wasn't always a gentleman, but I didn't care.

"You want to go for some coffee?" He asked.

I blinked. "Um, is that a band?" Five seconds later, I regretted randomly answering that specifically-worded question.

He laughed. Music to my ears. "No. Well, do you want to go for some coffee? I would kill for some classic right now." He stood up, and offered a hand.

Oh my gosh! He also likes the same coffee as me!

"Sure," I said, and took his hand to stand up. I was mildly disappointed when he let go, of course."

"Come on, I know a place," he said, and I followed him out of the clearing.

* * *

><p>I know it may sound stalker-ish, but I need to go to these places more often.<p>

First, the very serene clearing that looked like a scene from a movie. Then it was this coffee shop he brought me too, which looked like another scene from another movie. I lived here all my life. So how come I've never seen both before?

Instead of some stereotypical Starbucks, he brought me to The Unnamed Café which he says he hangs out in most of the time, since it's just a couple of blocks over from the park. It was like a mix of a diner and a fancy restaurant and a Starbucks and Auntie Marie's rolled into one. On one side, some acoustic band was playing _The Lazy Song_ by Bruno Mars. Which, from my experience in places that almost looked like this, was better than some screaming Metallica wannabe band. We both ordered some coffee, classic of course, and took a seat in one of the window booths.

"This is cool," I said, taking in my surroundings and making sure that Nudge, Angel, or Ella wasn't there dressed in all black and ducking behind the counter or a tree from outside or doing other covertly stuff like sitting in front of us with their back turned and looking in compact.

"Yeah," he replied, his eyes on the table.

Cue in the very awkward silence.

Fang took a deep breath. Wait a minute; I thought guys never take deep breaths? "Max, can I talk to you?"

I smiled a little. "Aren't you already talking to me?"

"No, about my parents."

"But-"

"I just need to talk to someone," he said, absentmindedly tracing the designs on the tablecloth with his finger. "I just want to talk to someone who doesn't know."

I was confused. I already knew about the fights he had with his parents. But was there really a reason why?

"I'm here." I said softly.

He took another deep breath. "I don't really know why. I just started fighting them. I mean, it's pretty much my entire fault, but I still keep on fighting with them."

I nodded, but inside I was like, _WHAT?_ Sure, I was expecting Fang to also fight with his parents a lot, but feeling the same thing? Was it really like that all the time, or was everyone different and us having the same thoughts was pure coincidence? Or was it fate?

"Why, I mean, why don't you stop?"

He shrugged. "I don't know. At first, everything I said was mostly stupid. But then the more fights we had, the more I started to realize that most of the arguments had a point."

"Maybe you could apologize."

He looked up, but this time, he didn't look mad. "I mean, your parents may have had already gotten your point. I'm pretty sure they're forgiving."

"Yeah, you're right." He said, and chugged down some coffee.

Now cue in more awkward silence.

"Can you clap your hands?" He asked, which made me jump. Fang, starting a conversation? In your dreams. In anyone else's dreams, actually. "Just once?"

I did.

"Then think of someone, like your crush." He said. I didn't need to, I was already thinking about him. "And then open your palms without separating one side. If the two lines across your palm are connected, it means you still have a chance with that person."

I opened my palms. The two lines were connected, turning them into one.

Oh my gosh.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: I would've continued here, but I wanted it to be all cliff-hanger-y and filler-y and whatnot. I apologize for the hints of OOCness and lack of creativity for this chapter, because: 1) I am still sleep deprived and 2) My week has still been bad. I updated because 1) I couldn't let you guys down, since it's almost been a week and 2) Writing made me feel better.**

**RANDOM QUESTION: Do you have any subject you hate but you're still good at? I mean, I hate Algebra (whose idea was it to put letters there, anyway?) but I'm really, really good at it and most of my classmates ask me for help sometimes.**

**REVIEW! =D**


	10. Music and Lyrics

**A/N: It's just the second week, and I already have a pile of homework larger than Olympus Mons. So here's the deal.I'll be posting a chapter every week, and if I can't, then I will post a short A/N, maybe with a couple of questions on what you guys want to happen with the story. If I don't post one, it might be due to exams. Heads up, I have monthly exams in July 14, so there might be a chance I can't post the weekend before.**

**NOTE: The first part of this chapter is on a Friday.**

**Anyway, thank you once again to:**

**JealousMindsThinkAlike**

**cindyp2**

**PEACELOVINGIRL**

**roylpain**

**Kalik of Gallifrey**

**Xx-Twitch-xX**

**Girl-With-Black Wings**

**LovelyMidnightSpark**

**Sierra156**

**Smileykiley - Thank you for pointing that out. I've corrected it ASAP, because sometimes I can't tell the difference between them =D.**

**aquamisfit**

**DISCLAIMER: I think I should stop doing this from the next chapters, since it's pretty obvious I don't own MR.**

* * *

><p><em><strong>June<strong>_

It's a few weeks before finals. A few weeks before summer. But wait, wasn't the hand-touching, tab-reading, guitar-playing, confession-making, hand-clapping moment back in, like, October-November? So:

_Q: Is Fang still teaching you? What happened after the confession?_

_A:_ After the "big reveal", everything was back where it used to be. Until now, he's still helping me hone my jamming skills. Though there are times he tells me bits and pieces about his family. From what I've learned, the only thing saving them from a broken family is him and his arguments. How, I don't really know. But according to him, it was his fault they decided to split up n the first place, so he wanted to fix it. And being the very comforting person I am, I told him it wasn't his fault and that it was probably hormones or something like that.

_Q: Did Fang follow your advice? What happened after he did?_

_A:_ I never really asked. I mean, he did tell me a really deep secret, but I could do the same thing to a stranger in a crab boat. I'm not really in a place to interfere with his personal life without asking straight out.

_Q: Why did you skip half a year?_

_A: _Well, my life isn't always that interesting. It was just the typical café talks, outfit planning, and redhead avoiding routine during the past six or seven months. Which leads to the next question:

_Q: Was there any other hand-touching moments after the previously mentioned one?_

_A: _Sadly, no is the answer. Besides the typical hyperventilating excuse, I didn't really want to ask for "help" and have Fang think that either I'm horrible at learning or he's horrible at teaching.

_Q: Did Fang give you anything for Christmas?_

_A: _Gee, I never knew he was that kind of guy. Anyway, we're not even that close. Also it was as if I knew what to give him and vice versa.

_Q: Have you still been doing that hand-clapping thing?_

_A: _Yep. It comes out straight. Every time. My friends say it's a sign. I tell them it's my good coordination skills or whatever.

So there you have it. Most of my freshman year in a nutshell.

I pushed through the crowd, Nudge, Ella and Angel following closely. All this time, we've been scheming for ways to get me closer with Fang. So far, none were successful, although the one involving a Luther Vandross song and a harmonica almost made it.

"Come on, Max. There has to be some other way," Nudge urged me. "You have less than a month to get a summer romance between the two of you going."

"Yeah," Angel chimed in. "I mean, don't you want to be with Fang?"

I slammed my locker door shut. "Yes, I do. But I'm not as creative as I am desperate."

Then, I saw it. Ella's face did the weird forehead scrunching, distant staring, eyebrow raising thing she always did when deep in thought. I hoped this idea was a _normal_ one.

"Five o' clock," Ella said. my body tensed, and I looked for the nearest reflective surface, which was my digital watch. I raised it, pretending to look at the time while my eyes were following the blurry figure in black which was getting bigger.

5... 4... 3... 2... 1...

"Hey, Max," Fang said at the same time I turned to face him.

"Yeah?" I asked.

"You mind if I postpone today's practice and have it tomorrow?"

I nodded, the corner of my eye watching Ella, who was still deep in thought.

"Hey, Fang," she said slowly. "Do you already have a song?"

He turned to look at her, confusion on his face. "What for?"

"Didn't Max tell you?" She asked, her hand sneakily making the universal _play along_ gesture.

"Sorry," I said sheepishly at Fang.

"Well, what is it, exactly?"

"You two have to perform in Music," Ella blurted out, and I gave her a _WTF?_ glance. "Mr. Millan didn't exactly say when, though."

Apparently, Ella's lie was convincing enough. "You have any ideas?" He asked me. I shook my head.

"I'll just get one. Then I'll show you tomorrow." He said, and then walked away.

"Ella, what have you gotten me into?" I groaned, leaning my head against my locker.

* * *

><p>"Why am I doing this again?" I asked Angel as she forced me to Mr. Millan's classroom.<p>

"Just think about it as a sacrifice. For Fax." She replied. Fax, which Nudge announced as the official Fang-Max love team name was not that creative, though it was either that, or Mang.

I tapped my knuckle lightly against the door, and Mr. Millan, who was grading a bunch of papers, looked up.

"You need anything, Miss Ride?" He asked, putting his pen down.

Don't get me wrong, Mr. Millan is actually one of my favorite teachers, since he often lets us goof of in class, just as long as it didn't involve ravioli and squirrels. But he was a teacher, and teachers can get incredibly scary when they call you by your last name.

I pulled out an empty chair and sat down in front of him. We already planned out what I was going to say to Mr. Millan, though that doesn't mean I can beat his debating skills if he ever disagrees.

"It's about Fang," I said, tugging at the end of my shirt. He looked up, intrigued to hear me mention his favorite student (as if the repetitive performances in his class didn't tell you).

"What about him?"

For the next five minutes, I told him about the lessons with Fang (which of course, didn't include any of the emotional parts). I would occasionally glance at him, and he would nod, motioning for me to go on.

"I just felt that he deserved extra credit." I said, turning to look at him again.

"And why should he have to perform with you?" He asked, eyes on the papers he was checking.

Those were the debate skills I was talking about. The only thing that can beat that, apparently, is planning ahead. Or so, Angel says. "I wanted to prove to you that he did teach me, and I thought it would make the class more familiar if Fang performed with me."

He froze, which was one thing he always did while thinking. He was obviously debating with himself in his mind, but all in all, those three minutes he spent practically killed me. He then shrugged indifferently, and I released my breath that I didn't realize I was holding in.

"Why not?" He said. "That would be something new."

I was about to say "thank you" when there was a soft knock on the door. We both looked up to see Fang, who didn't look surprised to see me there. It was the same thing with Mr. Millan, who shrugged again.

"The two of you have a week." He said, and motioned for me to leave. I got up, and passed Fang at the door, the two of us brushing shoulders. I felt his stare on my back as I made my way to my next class.

Was that a good thing, or a bad thing?

* * *

><p><em><strong>Saturday<strong>_

I tapped my fingers lightly against a nearby rock. I was in the same clearing we always went to when he taught me, and for today I was contemplating on his possible song choice.

If I had a look at Fang's iPod, I probably wouldn't be able to recognize more than half of the songs. He seemed to be listening to all genres, save for heavy metal rock. I've seen and heard him play Katy Perry, Justin Bieber, The Script, Adele, Adam Lambert, Natalie Imbruglia, SHEL, Boys Like Girls, Leona Lewis, Jimmy Eat World, My Chemical Romance, Kris Allen, Stephen Speaks, Lady Gaga, All Time Low, The Beatles, Owl City, Chris Brown, Mariah Carey, Britney Spears, Air Supply, Bee Gees, Paramore, Mute Math, Death Cab for Cutie, Hawk Nelson, Via Linota, Jon Meyer, John Mayer, and several others I have and haven't heard of. I have yet to hear him sing any of their songs.

I picked up a fallen leaf and randomly folded it, my mind still deep in thought. What were we going to sing? Hate That I Love You? Love the Way You Lie (though I don't ever want to hear him rap)? When I Said Goodbye? The possibilities are endless, considering that we're talking about Fang here.

I heard footsteps against the soft earth, and looked up to see Fang, guitar on his back, notebook in one hand. The breeze blew his hair in slow motion, and this was just one of the moments I felt like hyperventilating.

"You already have a song?" I asked, eyeing the notebook, as he sat down. I would give anything to have my hand in his instead of that notebook.

He nodded, and flipped his notebook to one of the messy, dog-eared pages. Once he stopped, I looked at the title and-

Oh. My. Gosh. You have got to be kidding me.

"You're kidding, right?" I asked.

"No," he replied, his voice serious. Why is he serious? "That's what I chose. You want to change it?"

Do I? Amazingly, no. I shook my head.

How could he have the emotional stability to choose such song? I was actually expecting something more... emo. I have never seen Fang be so cliché, or whatever he was doing right now. And is he really going to sing? Because he mainly has me sing whenever either of us plays.

"Max," Fang called out, hand poised on the first note of the song. "Are we going to practice or not?"

I picked up my own guitar, and got in the same pose. "Sure."

What was the song you ask? You'll have to find out.

* * *

><p><em><strong>One week later<strong>_

This was it. I watched as Fang set up some sheet music on the piano as I sat on my stool.

We practiced for a week, with Fang deciding to play the piano and have me on the guitar. Both of us sang, and Fang actually has an amazing voice.

"You guys ready?" Mr. Millan asked. I glanced at Fang, and he nodded.

Our classmates, who had been filled in earlier, watched us intently, a couple of them with hands near their ears in case our voices got violent.

Fang started playing the piano. I swallowed, and then took a deep breath. Most of our classmates' eyes went wide upon recognizing the song's intro. I cleared my throat, and then began to sing:

**(A/N: Max's part is in **_**italics**_**. Fang's is ****underlined****. Both, **_**underlined and italics**_**)**

_I've been living with a shadow overhead_

_I've been sleeping with a cloud above my bed_

_I've been lonely for so long_

_Trapped in the past, I just can't seem to move on_

I've been hiding all my hopes and dreams away

Just in case I'll ever need 'em again someday

I've been setting aside time

To clear a little space in the corners of my mind

I started playing the guitar, and the two of us sang together, our voices in total harmony.

_All I wanna do is find a way back into love_

_I can't make it through without a way back into love_

_Oh_

_I've been watching but the stars refuse to shine_

_I've been searching, but I just don't see the signs_

_I know that it's out there_

_There's gotta be something for my soul somewhere_

I've been looking for someone to shed some light

Not somebody just to get me through the night

I could use some direction

And I'm open to your suggestions

_All I wanna do is find a way back into love_

_I can't make it through without a way back into love_

_And if I open my heart again_

_I guess I'm hoping you'll be there for me in the end_

_There are moments when I don't know if it's real_

_Or if anybody feels the way I feel_

_I need inspiration_

_Not just another negotiation_

_All I wanna do is find a way back into love_

_I can't make it through without a way back into love_

_And if I'll open my heart to you_

_I'm hoping you'll show me what to do_

_And if you help me to start again_

_You know that I'll be there for you in the end_

As the last notes of our song faltered, the class erupted with applause. I glanced at Fang, and he smiled. No, screw that. He actually _grinned_.

I grinned back, oblivious to our classmates who had stopped clapping and to Mr. Millan, who was passing out some review sheets.

For now, it was just me and Fang.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: So, what do you think? It's not exactly my longest chapter, but school has been keeping me busy. Did the chapter title gave the song away?**

**Anyway, in the meanwhile, is it okay if you answer the following questions? The first ones are really important:**

**1. What should be Max's future occupation? Model/Fashion Designer's too girly; Musician is not really considered, and so are writer and actress because she's not going to write/sing/act in English; scientist is too professional; so my two current legit-but-not-so-creative-or-so-I-think option is either a Photographer or Painter. That's why I totally need your help.**

**2. What do you think about my long A/Ns? Do you think I should make it shorter?**

**3. Fax or Mang?**

**4. Eggy or Niggy?**

**5. Do you think pirates invented Algebra? Because they always tell you to look for x.**

**6. Which hurts more? Tripping up the stairs or tripping down? (I have more scars from tripping up.)**

**7. Have you ever used a treadmill to try and learn how to moonwalk? (I have, though my moves were not so smooth.)**

**8. Which is better, ordinary bacon, or honey-cured bacon?**

**9. What's the first thing you say/think of when you hear the phrase, 'the fruit of their love'?**

**10. What's your favorite gross/weird/fear-factor food? (My all time favorite is **_**Dinuguan**_**, which is pig's blood soup, and **_**Isaw**_**, grilled chicken intestines. I occasionally go for **_**Balut**_**, a boiled fertilized egg, but it's hard to find someone who sells some in where I live.)**

**=D.**


	11. And He's Out of My League Once Again

**CONGRATULATIONS! YOU HAVE OFFICIALLY REACHED PART 2 OF "HE'S OUT OF MY LEAGUE"!**

***Cue in balloons, streamers, confetti, clapping audience and maybe a couple of Party Ponies here and there***

**I totally apologize for these slow updates, so if I have to beg on my knees, then o be it =D.**

**A very huge thank you for those who were able to answer my questions: LovelyMidnightSpark, Xx-ThisSucks-xX, xXReading Is My PassionXx, Kallik of Gallifrey, Just an Angel of Death, ., moncheri9, nat dawg, Xx-Twitch-xX (to whom I assure I know exists =D), MaximumRideFanAddict, Emo Squirrel (to whom I recommend soup number five. Just look it up), Smileykiley and roylpain. You guys helped A LOT.**

**Also, for those who asked, the song in the previous chapter is "Way Back Into Love" by Hugh Grant and Drew Barrymore, which I totally don't own.**

**Anyway, I've promised to make the A/Ns on top shorter and put the gibberish at the end, so...**

**DISCLAIMER: Ha. As if I claimed MR. Haven't even tried yet.**

* * *

><p><em><strong>September<strong>_

Same school, different year. Same old bad-ass and fashion-challenged Maximum Ride.

In case you're wondering, nope, I'm not at school yet. But waking up at six in the morning reminded me that there were harder things than looking (or trying to look) for Waldo. And that there were worse things than having to wake up that early.

Someone knocked on my door, and I prepared my excited-but-really-really-cranky face I usually saved for the first day back. But what I should've put on was my what-the-hell-are-you-doing-here-at-six-AM face that I reserve for Nudge, Ella, and Angel, who were my visitors for the morning.

"Please don't tell me what I think you're going to tell me." I said, burying my face in my pillow.

"No, duh." I heard Nudge say as my closet opened and wooden and metal hangers started to clash with each other. Angel and Ella dragged me off my bed and into the bathroom.

"Please don't tell me my mom allowed this to happen." I said, entering the bathroom and locking the door behind me.

"Oh, she did." Angel called out as I stepped into the shower and drowned out the next five minutes if their chatter. I felt less cranky when I turned to face them again, but they, apparently, were not.

"Max, don't tell me you're planning on wearing _that_." Nudge said, glaring at the jeans, shirt, and hoodie ensemble I always wore.

I rolled my eyes. "As if you're going to allow me."

"That's my point." She replied, and dragged me to my room where a dozen tops, pants, skirts and jackets were waiting up for me, courtesy of Nudge.

"Why do I have to, anyway?" I asked, frowning at the huge pile. It would probably take more than an hour for Nudge to choose the perfect outfit.

Ella looked up from the pile of clothes."Don't you remember? Fang's still at our school this year." I sighed.

Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait a minute. Pause. Rewind. Play. Did I just mention Fang? Like, Fang, the love of my life who improved my skills in playing the guitar and sang with no more than five months ago? Yep, that Fang. And time skips usually lead to these:

_Q: Did you guys start any summer romances?_

_A: _Obviously, no. Fang and I were both single (but so not ready/willing to mingle) the whole summer. I know that because I was James Bond in my past life.

_Q: Did you guys keep in touch?_

_A: _No. Sadly, no.

Read the second question again. Read it again. Fang and I _did NOT keep in touch over the summer_. Not a single text, phone call, email, or even a wall post. Nope. So you know what that means?

I'm back to square one. I have to start all over again, so it's basically just like freshman year, where I was someone he barely acknowledged, and sometimes forgot my name (though I don't really recall the latter). We might as well be strangers in another world. To make it clear, well, it's like having your best friend move away and then five or ten, or several years later, come back. By then you would've made a lot of new friends and have a different best friend, so you're out of the loop with each other.

Back to present day, I watched as Nudge sorted through the impossibly huge pile of skirts, which were thankfully longer than the ones I see sluts wear at our school. Ella was picking out a top that wasn't too thin, see-through, clingy, or cleavage-dependent (since God knows I don't have any of that). Angel was holding up two cardigans, deciding on which one looked more worn-in but still decent. I sat down on my desk chair and decided to grab some sleep.

* * *

><p>"Max, wake up!"<p>

I incoherently mumbled something about making sure the clothes were my size, and forced my head up to look at Nudge, who had a couple of make-up brushes in hand.

"No, Nudge." I said firmly, pushing away her hand which was holding the brushes.

Ella helped me get up. "It's nothing much, Max. Just some foundation and a bit of concealer. Anyway, we have to get you in your outfit first."

Less than ten minutes later, Ella and Angel had forced me in a black cotton skirt with cherries all over it and a white tank top and a red cardigan that I had seen Ella wear before. They had also forced my feet in some nude ballet flats, and applied a bit of foundation and concealer on my face.

And you know what? I actually looked -dare I say it?- like an actual girl. But I was not willing to undergo this kind of torture again.

"How is looking like this going to help me get his attention?" I asked, fingering the hem of the skirt like I was about to rip it.

"Well, it'll let Fang know you're an actual girl." Angel pointed out. I punched her lightly on the arm (yes, I do that, too).

"Don't pack some extra clothes, Max." Nudge warned while the three of them put the rejects back in the closet, even some of their old clothes which they had brought along for my "benefit".

"Yeah, you should at least appreciate how we forced ourselves to wake up practically at 5AM." Angel said, grabbing a hanger and a dress. "Do you know how hard that is?"

"Hey, no one forced you. Also, this is not something you should do if you want to make me happy."

"Well, it might make you happy that Fang will notice you."

I rolled my eyes. "Whatever," I said, grabbing my messenger bag. "Let's just go to school."

* * *

><p>Students, both old and new were crowding the hallways, schedules in hand. Sign up sheets and recruitment flyers were posted all over the school, and some parts of the building were freshly painted. Everyone else I knew had no major changes happening to them. They were lighter or tanner, fatter or leaner, some were taller, hair was either shorter or longer, and in the redheads' case, their clothes were smaller.<p>

"Meet me at the lockers," I told the three of them. "I have some operative surveillance to do." Which was an alternative statement for "I have to go stalk my soul mate because I haven't seen him all summer and I miss him so much." They nodded, and walked on to our lockers. I made my way to one of the most familiar hallways and inconspicuously hid behind one of the newly placed potted plants. Which made me realize that red, black and white did not camouflage with green. But I wasn't planning on switching, anyway.

There he was. All six feet and I-don't-recall-how-many-inches of him, in a newer black ensemble. His hair was a bit shorter, his skin still the same brilliant olive shade and his muscles leaner. In short -dare I say it?- hotter than ever. He was talking to Tess (which we remember as my partner in Earth Science and friends with Fang probably even before Wikipedia was invented), who was clutching a small pile of books in one hand and a piece of paper in another.

The girly part in me was totally jealous of Tess, but the logical part felt better. I knew they weren't really going to be together since that would ruin their friendship. Though seeing how they knew each other that much. Tess knew his family. She probably knew all of his favorites, and she may or may not know his most embarrassing moment. I mean what kind of girl wouldn't want to know those things about their crush. And as much as I don't want to, I might as well be turning into some lovesick freak.

It was just the first day back, and all I had were fake ideas, that in the end I knew would turn into real disasters. It was hard enough to get Fang's attention without him intervening, and it was harder to do it again, this time not knowing if any miracles would come my way. I was beginning to run out of any originality, fast.

So let's just hope I can make it.

* * *

><p>"Hey, Max, I have an idea." Nudge said, looking up from her cup of fat-free yogurt.<p>

I tried not to roll my eyes or groan. Nudge having an idea while eating yogurt was not the best scenario, since there was one time an incident involving our gym teacher, Dr. Pepper, and top-control pantyhose happened while she was under the same circumstances.

"It better not be involved with any form of questionable dancing. Or any form of dancing, for that matter." I said.

Her face lit up, and I knew that it was much, much worse than dancing. Which only meant one thing.

"Cool," she said. "Follow me."

* * *

><p>"No, Nudge," I said stubbornly, my arms crossed.<p>

"But-"

"Nudge, this was worse than making me reenact a crossover music video of _Friday_ and _Beat It_. Which, by the way, may I remind you, did not work out."

"Max, trust me, this is going to get his attention."

"Explain how come joining the glee club is going to get his attention."

She shrugged. "Well, Glee's been pretty popular. I'm sure he has already watched a couple of episodes, if not all."

"And what makes you think I'm going to get in?"

"Mr. Millan said you had a great voice when you performed last June."

"That was, what? Three months ago?"

Nudge pouted at my stubbornness. "But you didn't even sing! You just beat up a bunch of guys from the local gym!"

"That doesn't mean I was blessed with the gift of singing."

Nudge opened her mouth to speak, but stopped short. I turned around to see Tess and Fang, along with a couple of Tess's friends head towards the bulletin board, Fang mostly trailing behind them.

"Hey, Max." Tess said upon seeing me and smiled sweetly. Not fake-sweet. But real, I-like-thinking-of-ponies-and-rainbows sweet. The kind that could make you puke if you see too much of it. "Are you signing up for anything?"

I shook my head. "Well, if you consider Nudge forcing me to sign up with her."

Tess smiled. "I've been forcing this guy to try out in any club." She said, punching Fang lightly on the arm. He, of course, didn't respond.

"How about you, Tess?" Nudge asked. "Are you planning on joining anything?"

She shrugged. "I'm thinking about joining the drama club." She scanned the sign-up sheets, and just when I felt her staring at me, said. "Hey, Fang, maybe you should join the glee club or something.

Oh. So that's why I thought she was looking at me.

One of her friends laughed at the idea. Fang, singing? Well, he did a better job than me last June, but still. He raised an eyebrow at Tess, who shrugged. She then proceeded to sign her name on the drama club sheet.

"I'll see you guys later." She said, and turned back to the direction she came from. The rest of her friends followed. As soon as they were gone, Nudge grinned at me.

"Come on, Max! What if Fang joins the glee club and you're in it, too?"

"I hate you." I said.

"Does that mean yes?" She asked excitedly.

"For one week. If he doesn't show up in one week, you know what's going to happen."

Nudge squealed from joy, and before I could change my mind, I signed my name on the sheet and studied my handwriting, which stood out in bold, black ink against the white sheet.

"This better be worth it." I said, more to myself.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: This craptastic filler-like chapter brought to you by me! =D**

**I know, you guys are disappointed and expect better, but I wanted a little build up. Haha. So, anyway, I sort of decided to ask some questions again, if you don't mind. Anyway, only questions 1-7 matter.**

**So I hope you help me out =D.**

**1. I plan to have a "Senior Prom Scene" somewhere in this story. But I've been thinking, what if I also add a "Junior Prom Scene"?**

**2. I'm also planning to make one of the main characters as valedictorian. Do you think I should make a speech or not? It'd be related to the story, of course.**

**3. Define your soon. 2 days? 3 days? 1 week? Other?**

**4. What is your all time favorite musical?**

**5. Would you rather have Fax with nothing stopping them from getting together? Or would you rather have Fax with situations/people getting in between them?**

**6. Have you just realized now how much I like asking questions?**

**7. What would you say if I asked questions at the end of each chapter? Ones related to the story, of course. But maybe that would be a little, um, weird. Hm...**

**8. Solve: I'm _nhappy.**

**9. What do you think/say when you hear the statement, "go home and eat rice"?**

**10. Have you ever cut tape using your teeth? The clear kind of tape.**

**Haha. Thanks =D.**


	12. Shut Up or Grow Up

**A/N: So, um, hey =D.**

**Thank you once again for all the wonderful readers who have answered my questions: Night Wolf (who I assure helped even if only the questions 9 and 10 were answered), xXReading Is My PassionXx, MPHknows, Xx-Twitch-xX, Fly on Maximum Taylor Ride, Kat-loves-love, desperatelyobvious and MaximumRideFanAddict. Also, I want to thank the others who reviewed this chapter: aquamisfit, Sierra156, JealousMindsThinkAlike, TakeItBack, Keggy and Heggy, and HeAt-StRoKe. All of your suggestions make sense, but I have this part run down already, so I apologize if no events met your expectations (hey, at least it was unexpected =D). Plus, it's never too early to make suggestions for Part 3 =D.**

**Also, just in case, these are the following points I would love to clear out:**

**1. Each part of this story will represent a year in high school. It will have four parts, so Part 1 was freshman year, and this part is sophomore year.**

**2. Tess and Fang are not an item. They are sort of friends, since their parents are friends, as stated in some previous chapter.**

**3. Iggy will be here sooner than you think.**

**LAST: The answer to question number eight is actually "I'm unhappy without 'u'". Get it? It's supposed to be one of those riddle things =D.**

**So, to set the mood...**

**Q: What room doesn't have windows, doors, or walls?**

**A: A mushroom =D.**

**DISCLAIMER: Not claiming. I swear. I also do not own **_**Love Song**_** by Sara Bareilles.**

* * *

><p><em><strong>Wednesday<strong>_

"_The Man Who Can't Be Moved_?" Angel asked. "She could just tweak the parts to make it a girl version."

Nudge shook her head. "I don't think she can do The Script very well."

"How about a classic?" Ella suggested. "Like one of those cheesy eighties songs?"

"No way." I said. "I can never do or try to do those songs."

"Rachel Berry song?" Angel piped up.

Nudge seemed to consider this for a moment before shaking her head no. "I don't think Max would want to do Celine Dion-y songs," she said, and turned to look at me. "Right?"

"Right."

We were at the cafeteria, several tables away from Tess and her entourage's table so Fang (who looked out of place with the emotionless face and black ensemble) couldn't hear any possible schemes that would not make him like me. The glee club auditions were tomorrow, and the girls, of course, wanted some appropriate song planning to take place.

"What's your genre, anyway?" Ella asked.

I shrugged. "As long as there's no pop culture reference whatsoever."

Nudge sighed. "Well, that throws the Ke$ha plan out of the window." I gave her a look. "What?" she added. "I was just kidding."

"Want to try _On the Floor_?" Angel asked half-jokingly.

Oh great. "Come on guys. You can think better than this."

Ella tapped her chin, deep in thought. "You don't do love songs, right?" She asked.

I nodded. Then the idea came to me. "I don't. And I've just found the right song."

* * *

><p><em><strong>Thursday<strong>_

Glee was popular, I had to hand it to Ryan Murphy, but the realization that the show and not the club was popular only came to me when I entered the auditorium and glanced around at the students who braved trying to sing in public and face the risk of probably being slushied by jocks. They had barely filled the front row of the left side of an auditorium that, thanks to rich alumni, could seat more than 500 people, and that's not counting the balcony. I feel sorry for those who have to sit at the back.

"Miss Ride," Mrs. Novernam, our school's current glee club director, called out, waving us over. "You're late."

I jogged up to the front row and took my seat, leaving Nudge, Angel and Ella to look for their own. Freshmen who had heard about me and sophomores, juniors and seniors who knew me looked up in disbelief. They were obviously thinking, really? Maximum Ride is going to join the glee club? But she can't even sing!

Well, that was exactly my point. And as mentioned previously, Nudge refused to accept that certain fact.

There was no certain order of auditions, so we had to pick, and oh-so creative Mrs. Novernam, of course, decided to be a bit more creative, put in Justin Bieber songs instead of numbers and it would be according to release date. I wasn't too thrilled to see the words _Never Let You Go_ staring back at me, though it was better than picking _One Time_, which went to a Noah Puckerman look-alike, only without the Mohawk.

I would've gone through a lengthy description of all the auditions, but even Nudge was bored, and I'm pretty sure Nudge doesn't get bored with anything related to Math and Science.

"Next up is Miss Ride." Mrs. Novernam said, and it woke me up of my daydream. I quickly got out of my seat and onto the stage, where I gave the pianist, a junior who knew me for my reputation, my sheet music. She showed no emotion to my decision to join or to my song choice, and instead started playing. I mentally tapped my foot and began to sing.

_Head underwater, and they tell me to breathe easy for a while_

_Breathing gets harder, even I know that_

_Made room for me, it's too soon to see, if I'm happy in your hands_

_I'm unusually hard to hold on to_

_Blank stares at blank pages_

_No easy way to say this_

_You mean well, but you make this hard on me_

_I'm not gonna write you a love song_

_'Cause you asked for it, 'cause you need one_

_You see, I'm not gonna write you a love song_

_'Cause you tell me it's make or breaking this and you're on your way_

I was about to go on to the next line, when familiar voice said, "Stop!" and I heard Mrs. Novernam sigh and say, "What is it now, Miss Brown?"

I looked to the left and saw no other than Lissa the Redheaded Wonder, making her way to the stage.

"Why is she even here?" Lissa exclaimed, dramatically pointing a finger at me. "She can't even sing her way out of a paper bag!"

And that's when her day literally went downhill.

True, that was only one punch. And the blood did sort of match her hair. But instead of standing up and punching me back, she just sat there and cried for her daddy, which seemed inappropriate considering the clothes she wore.

"Shut up or grow up." I said, glancing at her before making my way down the stage. "You decide."

"Miss Ride!" Mrs. Novernam exclaimed as I approached her. "Why did you do that?"

"I felt she was discriminating my talent and had no right to do so." I replied nonchalantly.

"Miss Ride, you are banned from all activities relating to the school's glee club."

I shrugged, once again nonchalantly and walked away, glancing at Nudge, Angel and Ella, who had watched the whole scene unfold. They stood up and we went out of the auditorium.

"Well," I said as fresh air greeted us. "There goes our plan."

* * *

><p><em><strong>Friday<strong>_

Exactly forty-eight hours since our last plan. And looked how that turned out.

"Got anything up your sleeve, Ange?" Nudge asked as we sat down, trays in hand.

Angel shook her head. "Amazingly, no."

"Ella?"

Ella shrugged. "None here, too."

So maybe we should cut ourselves some slack, since it had been less than a day after the fiasco. Amazingly, the Board of Trustees thought that getting banned from anything relating to the glee club had been a good punishment and just added detention yesterday. Other than that, we're back to square one. Again.

"Max?" Nudge asked.

"Hey, don't look at me," I defended. "This wasn't exactly my plan."

"Well, what was your plan, exactly?" Angel asked, in a non-offending way (since people who tell me something like that more often are the ones who hate me).

"Um, I don't know. Pining for him?" I guessed. "But there's a difference since we didn't exactly have a backup."

"True, true." Ella said. "And now we don't exactly have any ideas now, do we?"

Everyone shook their heads.

"Maximum!" Someone called out. I gritted my teeth, since most people who call me by my full name are teachers who really, really hate me or students who really, really hate me. Though I wasn't really expecting Mrs. Dabseer, our drama teacher and president of the drama club, who I know does not really, really hate me.

I put on a smile, mainly because Mrs. Dabseer doesn't like people she doesn't see smiling in general. "Is there anything you need, Ma'am?" I asked.

"I've heard about your performance during your Music class last school year, Max." She said, smiling and giving a little wave to the girls.

"But Mrs. Dabseer, I've been banned from the glee club."

She chuckled, as if I was very oblivious to a very obvious fact. Which I probably was. "You don't need to be in the glee club for this."

"What are you talking about, Mrs. Dabseer?" Ella asked.

"I want Max to audition for the drama club."

What the... the drama club? You have got to be kidding me. "But I don't act." I managed to choke out.

"But you can sing," she replied, like she was trying to make me understand the obvious. "And the drama club is in drastic need for some good singers."

"But I can't sing." I tried again.

Mrs. Dabseer raised an eyebrow. "I shall be the judge of that, Miss Ride." She said in a no-nonsense tone that if she uses more than thrice a day when talking to you, will imply that she hates you. Or strongly dislikes.

"What exactly does she _really_ have to do, Mrs. Dabseer?" Angel asked.

"I want to see her audition." She explained. "The school has agreed to hold them tomorrow."

"On a Saturday?" Nudge muttered. "So you just want Max to show up and audition, and if needed, partake in the musical?" She asked.

The teacher nodded. "Eight in the morning, Max." She said, her voice back to a friendly tone.

Nudge, Ella and Angel gave me a _play along_ look. "I'll be there." I said. Mrs. Dabseer thanked me and then left.

"Explain." I said, as soon as the drama teacher's figure disappeared.

"Performing in a play can make Fang notice you more than having you sing in the glee club." Angel said.

"How exactly is that? I thought Fang wasn't very much attracted to drama."

"Tess is in the drama club..." Ella began.

"And Tess is friends with Fang..." Nudge added.

"Okay, okay. I get the point."

"So, are you going to or not?" Angel asked.

"Fine. This better be more worth it." I said.

So much for questionable dancing.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: I have nothing against eighties songs or Justin Bieber. I swear.**

**WARNING: Rambling will initiate in a couple of words. If not in mood to see me go on and on, then skip the very large paragraph coming next.**

**My week was so full of writing. I have the calluses to prove it. Also, yesterday morning (Friday morning in mine, Thursday afternoon in PST) we had this activity in English and then there was this sort-of-retreat thing that made us all cry, even our English teacher. The worst part was, we had to attend an assembly right after, and when our class got there, everyone, including our HS department head was like, "Why are you guys crying?" Anyway, we weren't the only class that did the activity. But it was really touching.**

**BURNING QUESTION OF THE CHAPTER: Should I get a beta reader? I haven't really considered this, because of my schedule: Mondays to Thursdays, school, so I can only get a small part or a concept of the chapter written on the paper; Friday afternoon to almost midnight typing the whole chapter (which can explain why it's really short); and Saturday morning posting it so it would come out Friday afternoon-evening in PST. I don't really want to make you guys wait longer, but if you feel it's the best, then I can get one. If you're one or you know a good one, then please send a link to your/the recommended beta's beta profile**

**BURNING NOTICE OF THE CHAPTER: I need someone to help me. Not really someone to beta every chapter, but someone to mainly run concepts through so I don't have to ask questions all the time (since that can be annoying). Also someone from the USA who can help me since I'm not completely aware of the educational system/culture and stuff. I also need help with one thing which I cannot reveal here. So if you feel like you can stand my endless question asking, then feel free to volunteer =D. I'm not really revealing spoilers. Only hints.**

**Wow. A really long A/N. This must be a record.**

**=D**

**One last joke...**

**GOOD NEWS: Your long-time ultimate crush goes to you and touches your hand while you're alone in the room.**

**BAD NEWS: He's/She's been dead for two years.**

**=D**


	13. A Whole New World

**UPDATE: OMG SORRY FOR MISPOSTING CHAPTER 9. REALLY REALLY SORRY...**

**Hey guys! Sorry I've been gone for two weeks, since we just had exams and I really had to study. Plus, I'm pretty sure I mentioned it back in Chapter 10.**

**A very humungous thank you to LovelyMidnightSpark, Xx-Twitch-xX, TheCatWithBrownEyes, and MaximumRideFanAddict for volunteering. Please PM me/put in your review if you're okay with it or not, and I'll be sending you a couple of questions. If not, then I'm cool with it. Thank you also to desperatelyobvious, JealousMindsThinkAlike, fnickforever and Sierra156.**

**Lahfohwg ehoqgh - Sorry, but I don't really understand your review. I didn't stop writing two months ago. In fact, I'm pretty sure this story has been here for a little over a month.**

**Kallik of Gallifrey - I can't wait to find out what it is, too =D.**

**Night - I swear I'm alive. I checked my pulse in all ten areas. I asked my mom. And I may or may not have googled "how to know if you're still alive".**

**NOTE: Like I said last time, I'm no American so please correct me if there is something wrong with the facts and stuff.**

**DISCLAIMER: Oh, come on. Give me a break will ya? Anyway, never owned, never will.**

* * *

><p><em><strong>Saturday<strong>_

"Have I mentioned lately that I hate you guys for making me do this?" I asked, as we made our way to the school's theater. It was eight in the morning on a Saturday, but instead of lying on my bed, sleeping in, I was fully awake, dressed and showered and now was on my way to the auditions with Nudge, Ella and Angel with me for support.

"You have." Nudge said. "Like, a thousand times."

"Come on, Max," Ella urged. "Just think that you're doing this for Fang."

"Um, no, actually." I pointed out. "I'm doing this because you guys are making me do this because you guys think I'd want to do this for Fang."

"We'll pretend we didn't hear that." Nudge said.

"And I can't act even if my life depended on it." I added.

"Yeah, like how you can't _sing_." Angel said.

"I'll pretend I didn't hear that," I said as I opened the doors to the building and walked past a couple of hallways leading to the main theater. Unlike the glee club addition, there were three or four times more people, though some of them worked for the sets and costumes. Mrs. Dabseer was fussing around, a clipboard in her hands. There was a freshman on the stage setting up the piano and sheet music.

"Miss Ride? Where is Miss Ride?" She called out. I jogged to where she was standing and raised my hand.

"Here," I said, almost out of breath.

Mrs. Dabseer smiled. "So glad you could join us, Max."

I smiled back. "I'm sorry. Am I the last one?"

"Second to the last. We are still expecting a…" She adjusted her glasses and looked at the clipboard. "We are still expecting a Mr. Griffith. You may take your seat."

I motioned for Nudge, Ella and Angel to take a seat and we all took our places on the third row. There were a lot of students sitting and chattering, still waiting for the "Mr. Griffith" to arrive.

"So, are you the last one?" Nudge asked.

I shook my head. "Second to the last there's still some guy."

"Oh, I hope he's cute," Ella said, scanning the small crowd. "You can't really find a decent guy these days."

"Touché." Nudge and Angel said, and the three of them went on talking about boys, while I scanned the crowd for anyone familiar, *cough*Fang*cough*. No, really. After all, this was the main purpose of gracing the theater with my presence. And this was the reason why my friends made me wear another skort.

I guess I zoned out for a few minutes, because Ella was suddenly subconsciously tapping my shoulder and saying, "Did you see the guy? Is he, like, new here?"

I pushed away Ella's hand. "Where?" I asked, still more focused on looking for a particular dark-haired boy.

"Near Mrs. Dabseer." She replied, gaping in the said direction. I turned to see a tall, pale, strawberry-blonde haired boy with his back turned to us, talking to Mrs. Dabseer.

"Sorry I'm late." He said.

"Apology accepted, though you'll have to help on set if you want to make up for it." The teacher replied, and motioned for him to take his seat. Then she went up the stage and clapped her hands loudly. Everyone stopped chatting and turned to look at her.

"Thank you, everyone, for making it to our auditions. For some of you who do not have any knowledge of our production," Mrs. Dabseer looked in my general direction. "We will be doing the beloved Disney classic, _Aladdin_."

"No way in hell am I going to do Aladdin." I whispered to Nudge, Ella and Angel without turning my head. Don't get me wrong; I love Disney classics, I really do, but I love _watching_ them. Not acting like one of the Disney princesses and singing _A Whole New World_ at the top of my lungs.

"I'm pretty sure you only have to do one song." Angel said.

"And I think Jasmine is sixteen. You're sixteen." Nudge added.

"Who cares about the age, anyway?" I asked, half-listening to the questions the drama-wannabes were asking like, "How are you going to do the magic carpet thing?"; "How about the Genie's sudden change of appearance in every scene?" and "What about all the copyright stuff?" I know, sounds pretty impossible. Mrs. Dabseer and the Drama Club's senior members answered them with an air of authority and expertise by using responses like, "we know what we're doing", "we already have that planned out", and "that's been taken care of" and whatnot.

I saw Ella look pointedly at Nudge. "What we mean is that you should audition, because it looks like you're the only actual female suitable for the role."

"I'll pretend I didn't hear that." I muttered, as a Drama Club member passed out sheets of papers that everyone started reading.

"The scene indicated there will be the one you will have to act out during your audition." Mrs. Dabseer explained. "And seeing as there are two characters, you will be doing that in pairs."

I looked down at the script. "Great." I muttered. "She really wants us to do the one scene I despise acting."

"Well, that is sort of the only option." Nudge remarked.

Mrs. Dabseer called a couple of names and everyone turned to look at a dark-haired girl, probably a freshman, run up to the stage with a guy her age following closely. But what really caught my eye was the pianist.

And who was the pianist, you ask?

Yep, that's right. Fang. _The_ Fang who I had sort-of-but-not-really pined for since last year. The same guy for whom I willingly-but-unwillingly signed up for the Glee Club and the Drama Club. The guy with the same black ensembles, same black, messy hair (but in a good way) and the same onyx eyes that…

Okay. Please never mind that last paragraph. I'm going to lose my badass reputation if I do something like that again. Which I probably might.

I half-listened to the rest of the auditions, the rest of my mind more focused on trying to stay awake, and maybe a couple of thoughts about stopping for some frozen yogurt or flapjacks or whatever food was obtainable within walking distance of the school.

"Miss Ride," Mrs. Dabseer called out about a bazillion auditions later. I stood up and straightened my skort before walking up to the stage, script in hand. "You will be paring with… Mr. Griffith."

I turned to look at that my partner and remembered he was the late guy. He was pale, with his pale strawberry-blonde hair, pale skin, and pale blue eyes which seemed to glimmer with mischief. He gave a small smile upon seeing me and headed to the piano, where Fang was doing the smile-smirk thing he always does at him.

Whoa. Did Fang know this guy?

"Call me Iggy," he said as I went to the lower part of the stage. We were supposed to act out the scene before the magic carpet ride and the _A Whole New World _number.

"Max," I said just as Mrs. Dabseer gave us a signal to start acting.

Iggy wasn't reading from his script, and the look on his face showed that he remembered all the lines. I quickly tucked in my script in my jacket pocket. I might as well impress Fang with my "good memory" while I'm at it. I slightly looked up at Iggy, feigning amazement. "How-how are you doing that?"

"It's a magic carpet." He replied.

"It's lovely."

"You, uh, you don't want to go for a ride, do you? We could get out of the palace, see the world."

"Is it safe?"

"Sure. Do you trust me?"

I paused for a moment. "What?"

Iggy extended his hand. "Do you trust me?"

I smiled. "Yes."

Fang began playing the opening notes of the song, and I almost forgot to take Iggy's hand, though he did grab it and pulled me up to the higher part of the stage. He started to sing, and I have to hand it to him, he had a pretty awesome voice.

**(A/N: Max's in italic, Iggy's underlined. I know that you know that I know that you know the song.)**

I can show you the world

Shining, shimmering, splendid.

Tell me princess, now when did you last

Let your heart decide?

I can open your eyes

Take you wonder by wonder

Over, sideways, and under

On a magic carpet ride

A whole new world!

A new fantastic point of view

No one to tell us no

Or where to go

Or say we're only dreaming

_A whole new world_

_A dazzling place I never knew_

_But when I'm way up here_

_It's crystal clear_

_That now I'm in a whole new world with you!_

Like with the previous auditionees, the audience clapped and we both took a bow before going down the stage.

"Thank you, once again. I shall be posting the casting and callbacks on Monday." Mrs. Dabseer announced, and everyone filed out of the theater. On our way out, I felt Iggy's hand slightly brush with mine and a piece of paper suddenly appeared. Before I could ask, Iggy was already on his way out, with Tess and Fang. I told Nudge, Ella and Angel to go ahead, since I was starving, and opened the note.

_Up for some frozen yogurt?_

* * *

><p>"Ow, sorry, didn't mean to give you a heart attack."<p>

Even without the encouragement of Iggy's note, I went to the frozen yogurt place near our school to get some calcium and other nutrients I needed to keep awake. While I was in the process of putting some berries into my cup, Iggy had tapped my shoulder and I defensively kicked him right below the kneecap.

"Sorry, I get paranoid." I replied, helping him straighten his position, which was hard, considering that he was slightly taller than me. "Well, hey, at least it didn't spill."

He laughed, and the two of us sat on a nearby table.

"Where are Tess and Fang?" I asked, digging in the berry-combo-frozen-yogurt thing I made.

He shrugged. "They decided to go home early."

"How're you related to those two, anyway?"

"I'm Fang's best friend since kindergarten. Tess sort of became a mutual friend, but it's mostly the two of us when we hang out."

I mashed some of the blueberries with my spoon, squeezing out some juice and mixing it with some yogurt. "So you're from Fang's old school?"

"Yeah something like that." He replied, and after a few moments, added, "He isn't much of a talker, is he?"

"Yeah. I kinda figured that out from the first day."

There were a couple of minutes of awkward silence until Iggy pulled out a pen from his pocket and wrote down something on a napkin.

"Here's my number," he said, pushing the napkin across the table.

I folded it neatly and tinkered with the corners with my fingers. "What for?"

"Nothing really. Hey, I should at least make new friends, right?" He asked.

I put the napkin in my jacket pocket. "Yeah, you have a point."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: I don't own **_**Aladdin**_**, or anything related to it.**

**So, my excuse is exams. I swear I spent the whole weekend memorizing capitals, ethnic groups, literary devices and environmental laws. I hope my chapter wasn't too boring, though I did sort of feel it was long enough. Was it?**

**In other news, have you watched Deathly Hallows Part II yet? I'm not going to spoil anything, for the sake of those who haven't watched yet, but I have to say that THE BATTLE OF HOGWARTS WAS SOOOOOOOOOO EPIC. And that Neville Longbottom got reasonably hotter. Also the kid who plays Harry's second son, Albus Severus Potter, is very cute. My friends and I cried for more than half of the film. They really have grown up…**

**Anyways, review! =D**


	14. Callbacks

**Hey. I've been really busy this week (more on it later), so blame my teachers for a once again filler-like, might-be-mediocre chapter. And I apologize in advance for the once again filler-like, might-be-mediocre chapter.**

**Thanks to roylpain, dancingonmytoes, Beeni, lily, and wings for keeping me sane and telling me I misposted. I might've felt really stupid, but I did feel really stupid in a good way.**

**Thank you also to Wings-and-a-Fez, Xx-Twitch-xX, TotallyinLOVE53, JealousMindsThinkAlike, roylpain, Sierra156, and aquamisfit for the reviews. I totally appreciate it. So before we start…**

**My Health teacher when I was a freshman:** During the ages thirteen to nineteen, teenagers experience poverty stage…

**Okay, so it's corny. But seriously, my health teacher said that. Good thing we have a different teacher now. Moving on.**

**Oh, and just to clarify, Iggy is NOT blind.**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own Maximum Ride**

* * *

><p><em><strong>Monday<strong>_

"Cheer up, Max." Angel told me. "I'm sure you'll get the lead."

Okay. One: I'm not hopeful. No, seriously. With my luck and acting skills, I'd probably be the lady who says "still I think he's rather tasty" during Aladdin's big number. Two: Getting the lead is exactly why I hate this Monday more than any other Mondays. I mean, sure, I can sing a bit. But dance? I don't really know the difference between a jazz step and a foxtrot. Also, did I mention my skill of not being able to memorize more than ten sentences at the same time?

"Don't act all pessimistic, Max." Nudge chimed in. "Though if you don't get a part, maybe you could volunteer to help with the set and stuff."

"Wait, wait, wait, wait." I said, stopping. "Remind me why we're doing this again?"

"Do we still have to explain it to you?" Ella asked.

"Tess is our connection." Nudge added.

"I still don't get it." I said, starting to walk again. "I mean, Tess and I aren't exactly close. And I'm pretty sure she works on the costumes."

"Well, that's actually your problem." Angel said, sort-of-reluctantly.

"But you can do it in a 'scholarly' way." Nudge said, fingers forming air quotes at "scholarly". "Like, ask her the color palette of the costumes so you could match it with the background colors."

"Though that might be out-of-character." Ella added, tapping her chin thoughtfully.

"No need to think about that." Angel said, waving them away with her hand.

"Please don't tell me you have a plan." I said.

She flashed a grin and shrugged. "I always have a plan."

* * *

><p>"Come on Max," Nudge pleaded, trying to drag me to the general direction of the bulletin board in the school lobby. "I'm pretty sure you got a callback for Jasmine."<p>

"But then I'd have to dance." I said, struggling to keep my feet firmly on the ground. "And you know how I dance."

"It's not so bad." She said, still pulling at my arm.

"Max," Angel said in her no-nonsense tone, which can work on me on some days. I guess this was one of them, because I groaned and slowly shuffled through the crowd to the bulletin board where a couple of drama kids who had also auditioned were poring over every single sheet of paper, besides the one for callbacks.

"The callback sheet is not on the floor." Angel said once I arrived and started to feign interest on the shiny floor and shoe colors.

I looked up, my face level with said sheet and looked for my name. Not me, not me, not me, oh, me. Some girl named Cristobel and I got the callback for…Jasmine.

Oh great.

The drama kids, who had seen me absorb the fact that I was able to get almost-cast as a Disney princess who looks nothing like me, came over and patted me on the back saying things like, "congratulations", "you were better than Cristobel on your audition", "I'm sure you'll get the part", and "break a leg". Nudge, Ella and Angel gathered around me after they left.

"I told you you'd get the part." Angel said, beaming.

"Um, Ange, I got a callback for the part. I don't really think that's the same thing."

"I think Cristobel has a give-her-the-lead-part-or-I'll-sue-the-school kind of dad." Nudge added thoughtfully. "Or at least that's what one of the freshmen in the dance club told me."

"I'm so not doing this." I said, turning around and starting to walk towards my locker. The three of them followed for a very obvious reason.

"But you agreed!" Nudge exclaimed.

I opened my locker and started piling books. "Well I changed my mind."

"But Fang is clearly worth the questionable dancing!" Ella added. "Or at least he is for you."

"But he's not going to be there twenty-four seven is he? For all I know, Mr. Millan or Mrs. Novernam forced him to be in the glee club or to play instruments and stuff for them."

"Just give it a shot, okay?" Angel said, in her no-nonsense tone again. "We'll talk about it at lunch. I gotta go."

Nudge and Ella looked at their watches before saying that they had to go and walked away. I slammed my locker door shut, just as my phone vibrated in my pocket. Someone had sent a text.

_Your friends are right. You should at least give the callbacks a shot. Even if it does include questionable dancing. If you want, I could go with you and treat you to some frozen yogurt after =)._

I reread the text. It was from an unknown number, but seeing as the frozen yogurt was mentioned, I'm betting Iggy's behind this. I dug around my jacket pocket for the napkin with his number, and when I found it, I compared the two of them. They were the same. Then I remembered seeing his name on the callback sheet. He was against some junior for the lead, aka Aladdin.

I made my way to homeroom. Was I really going to the callback thing later? I typed out, _I'll think about it. Just meet me at the front of the school auditorium, okay? Thanks._

I walked the rest of the way in silence, my mind full of questions, one of them on how Iggy got my number.

* * *

><p>"Pros then cons." Angel said as we sat down on our usual table during lunch. Today's menu was Mac n' Cheese, which in my opinion, tasted like burned rubber tires, so I was in no mood eating and instead bit into the apple, the only thing that was probably edible for now.<p>

"Pros is extra credit." Ella started.

"Yeah." I snorted. "Extra credit for questionable dancing, which cannot be given to me."

"Improves communication skills." Nudge countered.

"But communication skills can't be improved because of the fact that I cannot conform to dancing, much less in questionable form."

"You can meet new people." Ella tried again.

"Yeah, I can meet more people who could make fun of my dancing or refusal to dance."

"What's with the dancing thing anyway?" Angel asked before shoving a spoonful of Mac n' Cheese down her throat (I know, it's weird she likes the cafeteria food that I really hate).

"You know why." I said, dropping the apple core and taking a sip of my water.

Angel nodded thoughtfully. "And you can't get over it because?"

"You know that one, too."

Okay. So it's an unmentioned incident, that for my sake, I will not mention here. This is about my "quest" to (sort-of) get together with Fang, people; not an overcoming-my-fear-of-dancing-much-less-questionable-dancing drama.

"But why can't you give it a shot?" She asked.

I shrugged helplessly.

"Moving on," Nudge said. "You could spend time with Tess, and get to know Fang."

"I can't really get to know him, since if I ask too much, Tess might suspect something."

"Get to know Tess to get a clue on what kind of girls Fang likes."

"May I remind you of one of my standards, which I mentioned last year, is that I'm not going to get a makeover just for someone who might not like me after all? I'm not going to be all emo, or dye my hair red; our mission is to get Fang to like me for who I am, and that does not include me doing some questionable dancing."

"You'll earn enough popularity points to get Fang to notice you."

"As far as I know, Fang does not take interest in popular people. Also am I going to get popular for my acting or for my 'dancing'?" I said, with air quotes on the word "dancing".

Nudge raised her hands in surrender. "I give up."

Ella mimicked Nudge's pose. "Me too."

Angel merely shrugged. "Maybe I'll think about it."

I rolled my eyes, and scanned the cafeteria crowd for Fang. He was at the far end of the room, near the windows, sitting with Tess and Iggy. Iggy had his bright blue eyes focused on me, a hopeful smile on his face. A smile version of Bambi eyes. And who can't resist Bambi eyes?

I leaned back my seat and sighed. "I'll still think about it. But you'll have to find out tomorrow, because I'm going there alone." I said, glancing at Iggy. Okay, so I won't be really alone, but I wasn't going with any of them. Right?

* * *

><p>"You're late." Iggy said as I walked toward him.<p>

"I'm not late, you just happened to be really early."

He smiled, and then opened the door. "Ladies first?"

I stepped inside, while he followed. "You do know I'm just doing this for the frozen yogurt, right?" I asked, fixing my hair into a neat ponytail.

He laughed. "Well, then you owe me when I get the part."

"You're an actor at heart, aren't you?"

"Well, something less exaggerated than that, but yes, I do like acting. I used to act at my old school. Fang used to play music for the drama club, too."

"Oh. Is that how you met?"

"Well, not really. We've been best friends since kindergarten; I just sort of convinced him to play for the drama club for the extra credit. And the frozen yogurt."

I nodded. We paused, seeing as we finally reached the doors to the main theater.

"You ready?" He asked, a hand on the handle.

I took a deep breath. "Ready as I'll ever be."

* * *

><p><strong>TRIVIA: The word "cooties" comes from the Tagalog word <strong>_**kuto**_** which means "head lice". (I found it in Wikipedia.)**

**Cliché cliff-hanger ending, I know.**

**My week was hectic, because it was Nutrition week in our school, and as a class officer, I had a lot of things to do (i.e. bulletin board designing, food-festival menu-picking). Also I had to compete in the essay writing contest, AGAINST MY SISTER. Not that we're competitive, but I know deep inside that she is a way better essay writer than I am (because I suck at ending essays).**

**Another thing that kept me busy was a video not-really-a-project. We had to make a script incorporated with a specific theme, then our group shot at my place, where they did some serious planking. I edited last Friday, since our deadline was midnight, but there was a problem when it saved without audio (even if it had sounds on movie maker). I ended up uploading it that way, since there isn't much dialogue in it, anyway.**

**So that pretty much explains why I'm late again.**

**HEADS UP: I have exams again on August 17, so I'm not going to be able to post the weekend before that, since it's major exams.**

**Anyway, thanks. Review please!**


	15. Dancing

**Me again! You can still blame my teachers on this one, though not really. Get it? More later.**

**Thanks once again to Sierra156, fnickforever, roylpain, purplewing, LovelyMidnightSpark, desperatelyobvious, Chocogirl24, aquamisfit and JealousMindsThinkAlike for the reviews which were very much appreciated. **

**Also, since this chapter is sort-of filled with dancing, I have taken wild guesses and Wikipedia searches as my aid. If I get any facts wrong, then please correct me, because I'm no dancer. So, I might as well…**

**RANDOM FACT: **There are actually PINK ELEPHANTS, but they're only found in India. The animals wallow in the dried red soil found in some regions, leaving their hide covered with a pink powdery film, which wards off insects and gives the hide a genuine pink pigment =D.

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own MR.**

* * *

><p>Okay. You can do this, Max. You can <em>so <em>do this.

Okay. Who am I kidding? I mean, what am I doing anyway, a step ball change (if a move like that ever existed) or what?

"You can do this, Max." Iggy whispered.

Oh, right, Iggy. The two of us once again, arrived last and Mrs. Dabseer had made us pairs since we were both auditioning for the lead roles. And now both of us are on the stage, about to do a Waltz or a Tango or a Foxtrot or whatever partners dance there is. We just have to wait for a signal.

"Yeah, right." I muttered in a sarcastic tone.

"It's easy enough," he whispered. "You just have to-"

"You may now start." Mrs. Dabseer called out, and the pianist began to play.

"Do you trust me?" He asked.

"Iggy, I appreciate that, but quoting Aladdin is not exactly-"

"Do you trust me?" He asked, his voice only loud enough for me to hear. "Just follow my lead."

* * *

><p>"Oh, come on." Iggy said, scooping out some blueberries from his frozen yogurt. "You actually did great."<p>

We were in the same frozen yogurt place we hung out in last Saturday, both of us eagerly ingesting a post-callback snack which Iggy paid for, as promised. Tess, who still had a short meeting with the drama club, followed shortly. Fang, sadly, was nowhere to be seen.

Let me get one thing straight: You wouldn't want to hear about what _really_ happened. I don't know the exact dancing-terms, so a step-by-step itinerary of our feet isn't exactly a good read, but a very good cause of a headache. I miraculously managed to avoid tripping on my feet (or stepping on Iggy's feet), and the performance ended with small applause and Mrs. Dabseer saying. "Not quite bad, Ms. Ride. Although you may have to improve your skills. Overall, you were better than Ms. Murile."

"True." Tess said, digging into her own cup. "I'm sure you're name will be on the list tomorrow."

"Yeah. I'll be cast as Woman number one on Aladdin's first song." I said, shoving a spoonful of frozen yogurt into my mouth.

"Trust me, Max, I'm from the drama club." Tess said. "I know Mrs. Dabseer thought you were good. She even said you were better than Cristobel."

"You wanna bet?" I asked.

"Yes, I wanna bet." Iggy said. "If you get the part, we will be personally look for someone who can help you improve your dancing skills."

"That's not really for my benefit."

"It is, for your role and for you to avoid Mrs. Dabseer's wrath." Tess said. "So are you in or not?"

By the looks on their faces, it was really obvious that they were including me in an unknown plan, which hopefully involved Fang. I shrugged, and said, "Deal."

* * *

><p><em><strong>Tuesday<strong>_

"Just tell me the results." I said, facing the direction of the bulletin board, where most drama geeks and freaky-callback-people were gathered around. Some of them glanced in my direction, but the expressions on their faces didn't give anything away.

"But isn't it like, sacred to look at the results on your own?" Nudge asked.

"Um, no, Nudge. As if all those people who know each other looking at the cast list at the same time is not proof."

"Then we'll look at it with you." Ella said. "And if I'm not mistaken, we still have to find out if you win the 'bet' or not." She added, referring to yesterday's deal which I told them about right after.

With a sigh, we walked to the bulletin board, and as if by magic, the theater crowd parted, either by fear, shock or admiration.

"Can't I just ask them?" I whispered.

"Max..."

"Fine." I said, taking a couple of cautious steps toward the cast list. I started reading from the bottom, from the announcements for extra help, to the minor characters, to the sultan, to Abu, to Jafar, to...

Oh _joy_.

"Oh my gosh, Max!" Nudge squealed, hugging me and trying to knock me off in the process. "I can't believe you got the part!"

"I can't believe it either." I said, prying her arms off me. My phone lit up in my jacket pocket and I retrieved it to find a text from none other than Iggy.

_I told you you'd get the part. We'll tell you at lunch :)._

"It's official, guys. At lunch." I said, as the bell rang and all of us headed to our rooms.

* * *

><p>"Relax," Ella said as the four of us made our way through the cafeteria maze, to the table near the window where Iggy was waving his arms like crazy. "It's just going to be about dancing."<p>

"Questionable dancing." I said, as I focused my eyes on Fang, who was sitting in front of Iggy and Tess and had his back turned to me.

"Hey guys," Tess said as we arrived, lunch trays in hand. "Fang, make room for the four of them."

And that's when Ella accidentally-on-purpose shoved me so I ended up sitting beside Fang, which is not easy, even if I've been in situations where Fang is less than two feet from me. So my hyperventilating self emerged out of nowhere, and well... you get the point.

"So," I said, opening my can of coke. "Please just tell me who's going to _try_ to teach me to dance, because from the look on your faces, it's pretty obvious you can't hold it in any longer"

"That was a weird way of saying that." Nudge said. "It sounds like, well... never mind." She added and everyone turned away.

"Well, you sort of have to understand that the three of us had a sort-of bet thing." Tess said, and turned to Fang. "And he lost. So-"

"So Fang is going to _try_ to teach me dancing?" I asked, still emphasizing on the word "try". I mean, this is _Fang_. I have never heard about a semi-emo who plays Natalie Imbruglia and can (but maybe doesn't really) dance. I have only heard about a semi-emo who can only do the former and never the latter. So it was really hard to believe when Iggy and Tess nodded, wide grins on their faces. Fang, on the other hand didn't say anything, but I can feel a weird reaction radiating off him.

"You have got to be kidding me." I said.

"Fortunately and unfortunately, we're not." Iggy replied.

Don't get me wrong. I would really love to spend a couple of extra hours with Fang after school or during free period, but none of the activities I imagined we were going to do did not include questionable dancing, or accidentally knocking him unconscious with a lock step and a kick ball change.

"Come on, Max." Iggy said. "We made a deal."

"Fine." I grunted. "When and where do we start?"

"Auditorium, free period tomorrow." He said. "According to Tess, Mrs. Dabseer won't start rehearsals until the day after tomorrow."

"In that case, I recommend you prepare a bucket of ice and an open mind for twisted ankles."

Fang raised his eyebrow, and I caught a flicker of a smile. How often did he smile in front of Iggy and Tess, anyway?

"Game. I'll meet you there."

* * *

><p><em><strong>Wednesday<strong>_

"No, Nudge. I don't think skirts or skorts are that good for dancing." I said, as Nudge, Ella and Angel rummaged through paper bag after paper bag of clothes that they had brought along to my house.

"But I'm sure you're going to do a partner's dance in most of the scenes." Nudge said.

"Jasmine didn't wear skirts."

"But you are, today."

"Remember, Nudge: I'm not willing to be girly or emo, even if it's for Fang. I have standards, remember?"

"Really, Max?" Angel asked skeptically, with eyebrows raised.

"Yes. Now you guys get out, because I am going to have to dress myself first."

* * *

><p>"Seriously, Max, I don't think that's appropriate for dancing." Nudge said eyeing the jeans, tank top, and cardigan I had chosen to wear to school.<p>

"But you have to admit, her style did get better." Angel pointed out. I made a face, and she smiled angelically back at me.

When we reached the school, I caught a glimpse of Fang hanging out in one of the hallways. Fang, being a semi-emo with good senses, acknowledged my glimpse by giving a brief nod. I hoped he prepared the ice bucket. I'm pretty sure hyperventilating contributes to the possibility of me accidentally knocking Fang unconscious or twisting his ankle during a step ball change.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Free Period<strong>_

You can do this, Max. He's teaching you how to dance. He's not expecting you to dance like Jennifer Grey. He's going to _teach_ you how to dance like Jennifer Grey. Or at least make you level up with your dancing skills.

The auditorium, which was gracefully provided my Mrs. Dabseer once she heard our plans (though she did give Fang a weird look), was dark and silent, which was either peaceful or an opening scene of a horror movie where some guy with a chainsaw suddenly comes out behind the curtains. Being my usual paranoid self, I headed straight to the auditorium after the bell rang.

"You're late." I said as Fang entered the auditorium and quickly ran up the steps.

"Yes I am." He said, sitting beside me at the edge of the stage. "So..."

"Do you really dance?"

"I can. But I don't."

"So if you don't, the why can you dance?"

"Lessons." He shrugged. "My parents made me take them when I was a kid."

"Oh."

"So, do you want to start?" He asked, standing up and brushing the dirt of his jeans."

"Sure."

I _so_ hope his parents aren't going to charge me any medical bills when I accidentally twist his ankle.

* * *

><p><strong>Sorry for the filler-ness once again. I admit that this is totally not my best chapter, and I have never used so many line breaks in my life. I swear I will try to make up for it next week, if I'm able to publish a new chapter.<strong>

**In the meantime, if you're really bored, I recommend you to go to **youtube(dot)com/watch?v=osOMcSV1Bj0**. It's one of the ten short films in a film anthology made to celebrate a hundred years of a certain company, and it's my favorite. It's in Tagalog, so don't forget to click the small red CC button for subtitles (BTW, I'm not advertising the company. I just thought the short film was really cool and wanted to share it with you guys.)**

**My week was okay, because we had two days off due to heavy rains, and I got more time to rest. It was a bit sad, because my English teacher's dad just died last Thursday =(. I pray for him.**

**That's pretty much it. Please review and tell me what you think =D.**


	16. Love and Contradictions

**It's me once again =D. Like I mentioned a couple of weeks ago, I won't be posting next week since I have to start studying for major exams. So I hope this chapter is not too crappy.**

**Anyway, thank you to aquamisfit, desperatelyobvious, Chocogirl124, JealousMindsThinkAlike, ., Zezemi, Velvet Night, Sierra156, LovelyMidnightSpark and DanceLikeNobodyIsWatching1997 for the reviews. They seriously made me smile =D. I am also eternally grateful to Xx-Twitch-xX =D.**

**Enjoy!**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own MR.**

* * *

><p>"I seriously can't do this." I groaned, as Fang nudged his foot to mine so my foot would stay in the right position. Yes, I should be feeling really excited, but that's hard to do when I'm more on avoiding any accidents that'll send either of us (mostly him) to any place involving registered nurses.<p>

"And why can't you?" Fang asked while forcing me turn, which ended up not so gracefully.

I should be having the time of my life. I mean, Fang and I are alone in the auditorium. There are no sounds heard from outside, and Fang didn't really prepare any music, so we're dancing in silence. But no, questionable dancing had to ruin it. Thanks a lot.

"Because this is the part where you give up trying to teach me and I break my former record of twenty-six minutes."

Fang looked at his watched and then _grinned_. Then he showed me the watch face. Only twenty-one minutes had passed.

"Oh, bummer," I said, sarcasm dripping in my voice (Do I even need to tell you?). "So are you willing to stay for six more minutes?"

"Well, I'm planning on staying for more than six minutes." He replied while teaching me a couple of arm movements. "Do you really doubt my dancing skills so much?"

"I never said I did. But then, I don't trust you to be able to teach me without either of us getting into an accident."

"Well, if I tell you something about myself, will you trust my dancing skills?"

YES. Yes, yes, yes, yes and yes. "Um, sure."

"I have Pogonophobia."

Okay, that totally made me stop in my tracks, and possibly step on Fang's left foot. What kind of emo-but-not-really-emo guy who knows how to play the guitar and dance has an irrational fear of beards?

"Yeah, and I have Peladophobia." I said, checking for any footprints on his shoe. Luckily, there were none.

"No seriously, I really do have Pogonophobia." He said, then paused as if trying to remember what I said. "Wait, you're scared of bald people?"

"No, I was kidding." I said, wondering if it was the wrong move or the right one. Which is really heard considering that Fang has a very good poker face. "So why do you have Pogonophobia?"

He shrugged. "I don't really know. No one in my family or clan even has a beard. And most of the beards I've seen are the regular ones, and not the creepy or weird ones like those guys in the circus."

"Oh."

"So," he said twirling me one last time. "Do you doubt my dancing skills now?"

I smiled. "Nope."

"Well, you've nailed the basic routine, maybe we could continue this tomorrow. Do you want to go back to the main building?"

I sat down at the edge of the stage. "Nah, I think I'll stay here a little while and enjoy the silence. Are you going back to the main building?"

He sat down a foot from me, and he looked like he actually want to lie down on the floor. "No. I sort of like the silence here, too."

We sat in silence for a couple of minutes before I heard Fang mutter, "All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players: they have their exits and their entrances…"

"And one man in his time plays many parts, his acts being seven ages. " I finished, lightly drumming my fingers on the cold floor of the stage, which inclined me to more deep thinking. Was one of Fang's "parts" in his life being my, well, boyfriend or something synonymous but less mushy that that? Or was he just another testosterone-filled guy who had a thing for the Redheads? I'd prefer the former, obviously.

"What would you say about the 'love' stuff?" I asked out of nowhere, which sent out a dozen flashing red symbols in my brain. Way to go, Max.

"What did you eat for lunch?" He asked, incredulously.

"No, seriously. I mean, love is so gushy and stuff and it's like everyone's talking about it. How about you?"

"'_Love is an irresistible desire to be irresistibly desired._'"

"Robert Frost, right?" I asked, standing up and sitting on the piano bench. Fang nodded, and then stood up, sat beside me but still keeping some distance between us. He started playing a couple of notes.

"'_If music be the food of love, play on_.'" I quoted as he continued playing.

"I don't really have much of an opinion about love." He said. "Though if I did fall in love with someone, I'm sure I'd know. '_Gravitation is not responsible for people falling in love.'_"

"Albert Einstein." I murmured, as the last notes of Fang's song played and his hand hovered over the keys, motionless.

"Seriously, what did you eat for lunch?"

I smacked Fang lightly on the shoulder (oh my gosh). "Nothing, hey, I'm a girl. I'm unpredictable."

"Good point." He said, then checked his watch. "I think we better go now."

We both grabbed our things and went outside, when we reached the main building, Fang stopped and grabbed a piece of paper from his pocket. He handed it to me and I opened it, Fang's number, the only number I remember by heart, staring me in the face.

"Um, I think you already gave me your number." I said, handing him back the paper.

Fang blinked, then nodded. "Oh, yeah. I'll text you when we're going to practice again."

"Yeah, sure."

I watched as Fang made his way to the second floor, where his next class was. You know that things are bad when the guy you like forgets that he gave you his phone number before.

Oh well.

* * *

><p>"So is he really scared of beards?" Nudge asked, drumming her fingers against the wooden table in Auntie Marie's.<p>

"I don't think so." Ella said. "My cousin has this co-worker who's also Fang's cousin, and I'm pretty sure he has a beard."

"O-kay," I said, not really sure if I wanted to ask about that. "So why did he say that?"

"So he could pass that as an excuse for talking to you." Angel said.

"So why of all things, would he talk about Pogonophobia? I'm sure he has a bunch of other _real _secrets to talk about."

"He's a guy." Nudge explained. "Guys panic when they talk to someone they like, too."

"Oh, so now you're implying that he likes me?"

"Max, it's really obvious. He taught you how to play the guitar, he sang with you without any complaints, and now he's teaching you how to dance even if he's not part of the theater community or the dance group or even if he could've just dropped the 'bet punishment' thing."

"He taught me how to play the guitar because he liked my guitar and got an idea. He sang with me without any complaints because there was extra credit included. He's teaching me how to dance because he'll probably get extra credit for helping, and because Iggy and Tess are his best friends and they probably always accept losing bets and he doesn't want to let them down or something."

"Why the pessimism, Max?" Angel asked, taking a sip of her iced tea.

"I'm not being pessimistic, I'm being realistic."

"Well then, you'll have to accept the fact that Fang might like you, then."

"The key word being 'might', I'd say."

"Max," Angel said, with her no-nonsense tone.

"I'm going home. I still have a bazillion lines to memorize." I said, even if the scripts weren't even handed out yet. I picked up my things and my unfinished cup of coffee, and then gave them a small smile before heading outside.

Yes, I'm crazy. Yes, my friends are definitely crazier. But for Fang and I to like each other not knowing that the one likes the other? We might as well be the two most awkward people in the world.

But that would be nice. Maybe.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Thursday<strong>_

"Chill out Max, you're not going to knock anyone out." Nudge said as the two of us walked to the main theater. "It's just orientation."

"So what's the dance group doing in the orientation?"

Nudge shrugged. "I don't know, either. We'll just have to find out."

We opened the doors to the main theater, where the actors were lounging on the front seats and the dancers were talking to each other while sitting on the stage's floor. Mrs. Dabseer was at the far side of the stage, talking with a senior who was probably the leader of the dance group. Nudge walked over to the dancers, while I took a seat beside Iggy, who was talking to Tess who was on his other side. Tess gave a little wave, and the two of them turned to look at me.

"How was the practice?" Iggy asked, a flicker of a smile on his face.

"It was, well, it was fine." I shrugged. I so hope Fang didn't include the mushy "love" conversation if he ever talked about yesterday with Iggy.

"I guess I didn't need the ice, after all."

Oh. My. Gosh.

I turned to look at Fang, who had suddenly materialized beside me. Upon being subjected to my attention, he slightly raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything.

"Um, what the heck?" I said after Fang's "reaction".

"What?" He asked nonchalantly.

"Didn't your parents tell you that it's rude to interrupt other people's conversations?" I asked, praying that I wasn't turning red or grinning like a fool.

"Well, I'm actually included, since I'm being asked, too." He said. "You just didn't see me arrive."

See, that's reason number sixty-eight on why I love Fang. He has an actual brain that he uses. "Yeah, not exactly one of your skills that I see on a daily basis."

"Wait, so you want to see him not being able to be seen by you?" Iggy asked, forehead scrunched, as if wondering if his question even made sense. Which sort of did. I was about to open mouth to answer, when Mrs. Dabseer clapped her hands loudly. Everyone stopped chattering and turned to look at her, while some of writers handed out the scripts.

I started flipping through mine, and eventually got tired and put my arm down on the seat's armrest. I felt a small shock on my hand, and looked down to see Fang's hand right beside where my hand had been. He was also looking at his hand, since he did feel the shock, too.

"Static electricity." He murmured.

Mrs. Dabseer started talking about the play, but I was too distracted to actually pay attention. That spark, even if it was a literal spark, actually mattered. But no, I still refused to believe that it was an actual sign. So instead, I mentally shook my head and tried to listen to Mrs. Dabseer.

The last thing I'd want to happen is to forget that Fang will _always_ be out of my league.

* * *

><p><strong>Quotes by William Shakespeare, Robert Frost, William Shakespeare, and Albert Einstein respectively.<strong>

**I know, it's pretty crappy, but I'd feel more guilty if I leave you guys chapter-less for almost three weeks.**

**I've been getting busier, because this week is the one I dub as "Project week", which is at least two weeks before the exam where our teachers start assigning the projects we have to do as a subject requirement, and the deadline is usually the next week, "Review week", where we review or study last-minute lessons before the exam. It's worse, because most of the projects given to us have to be submitted on the same day, and it's hard deciding which one to do first. Also, some of our teachers are pretty vague, since they don't give the important details for our projects *cough*English teacher*cough*. So let's say I'm having "the time of my life". Yes, you may blame Project week for the not-so-excellent quality of this chapter.**

**Anyway, I gotta go. Review and tell me what you think =D.**


	17. Maybe

**Finally, I'm back after two weeks of explaining meiosis, case studies, frequency distribution and geometry problems =D.**

**A really big thank you to MyLifeIsPathetic, Zezemi, BookWorm2011, desperatelyobvious, JealousMindsThinkAlike, aquamisfit and Sierra156 for the reviews.**

**Anyway, I hope this pays back for being gone for two weeks =D.**

**NOTE: Max is 16 in this story, and she is still a minor, even if 16 is probably legal in 31 states. There is no real location for this story, as you might have noticed, for some random reason.**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own MR.**

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><p>"Any questions?" Mrs. Dabseer asked after a very lengthy explanation of the production, which probably put half the dance group to sleep.<p>

I raised my hand, and this caught everyone's attention, me being Jasmine and all. "It's in the script that I have to kiss Aladdin. Do I _really_ have to kiss him?"

This got everyone whispering, and I even heard Iggy jokingly say, "Ouch, Max. I'm mortally wounded." From the corner of my eye, I could see that Fang remained the emotionless brick wall he is, though a sixth sense told me he was thinking about the current issue, too.

"Well, Miss Ride, the officers have been thinking about it. Since you and James are still minors, you'll have to ask a legal guardian to sign a waiver of approval. If both of your guardians agree, then we'll do it for real. If both disagree, we'll have a fake scene. If one agrees and one disagrees, we'll be thinking about it and persuade either one of our chosen position. If possible."

"Seriously, Max, am I not that kissable?" Iggy asked jokingly, pouting his lips, making him look funny.

I pretended to think about it before shaking my head no. "Well, you aren't really that kissable."

"True, that." Fang said, which sort of set me off guard, since he mostly listens to his friends' conversation. But then, Iggy is his best friend, after all.

But seriously, would I want to kiss Iggy for the sake of the play? Would Iggy want to do the same thing for the same reason? And why we're they allowing that? I mean, I know I'm already sixteen and probably legal in at least half of the states, but I'm pretty sure it's not legal here. I raised my hand again.

"What is it again, Miss Ride?"

"Why are we going to kiss, anyway?"

She tapped her chin thoughtfully, like she was expecting this question, but did not actually expect it to be asked. "Well, Maximum, it was a comment given through our suggestion box." She replied, referring to the large, red box outside of the theater's doors that was probably mostly filled by parents and random eleventh graders that wanted some action in the theater.

She continued babbling about some other stuff. I may or may not have played hangman with Iggy, Tess and Fang (who I should mention has a really wide vocabulary, another reason why I like him). When Mrs. Dabseer told us that we could "Run off and do whatever the hack we had to do" (I don't know whose words exactly. But it probably belonged to someone who sounded a lot like her), Nudge grabbed her bag and ran to me in record time.

"I think I might have drooled." She said, running her fingers through her hair. "Did you actually pay attention to her? Or were you paying attention to a certain someone who actually knows what 'accede' means?"

"Nope and probably not." I said, making my way through the small crowd, Nudge following close behind.

My phone vibrated, and I took it out to see a new text from Fang. We were going to practice again, after class, which sort of reminded me of the time when he was still teaching me how to play guitar.

If I could go back in time, would things be better? Would they be worse? Or would they be just the same?

* * *

><p>"Max?" Fang asked, as he was about to spin me (I never really understand why he talks to me right before I spin).<p>

"Yeah?" I asked, trying to balance myself, since we were near one end of the stage.

"Are you really going to kiss Iggy?"

If I was still spinning, I might've fallen off the stage. "I'm not really sure. I think I'll get a rain check with my parents."

"But if you were going to decide for yourself, would you kiss him?" He sat down on the edge of the stage, and I did the same. Oh boy, another heart-to-heart talk.

"Probably not." I said. "I mean, Iggy's no stranger, but he's not really someone I'd want to kiss. Not now, I guess."

He lay down on the cold floor of the stage, his legs still hanging off the edge and raised his eyebrows when I laughed at him. "Yeah. I know this sounds ridiculous, but-"

"I'd rather not hear it." I smiled. "Let's say I'm going to get crazy if I hear an emo boy talk about mushy stuff like love." I said, emphasizing the word 'love'. Sure, I'd love to hear Fang talk about his opinions on relationships and stuff, but that sort of sounds suspicious, since we barely knew each other. But then I remembered that one time we were in a coffee shop, talking about his parents, when he said, _"I just want to talk to someone. I just want to talk to someone who doesn't know."_

"And if I wasn't emo?" He asked, getting up and leaning on his elbow.

I thought about it for a moment. "Nope. I don't think I can handle a boy talking about something as mushy as love, either. Now that I think about it, I don't think I'd want to hear anyone else talking about something like that."

"Even if it's nice?" He asked, lying back down and spreading his arms.

"Since when do you ever use the word 'nice'?" I asked, slowly lying down on the stage floor. To be honest, my first thought was, _gross, meadow scene from Twilight_. But it felt nice that Fang was lying there beside me, looking straight at the ceiling.

He shrugged, which was weird considering that his arms were spread out on either sides.

"It might be fun, you know," he said, mostly to himself or to the ceiling. "To go stargazing sometimes."

"I think you're the one who ate something weird today." I said, and Fang looked at me with a raised eyebrow.

"Eh, I guess so. Doesn't matter much anymore, anyway."

Right then and there, I wanted to tell Fang that I liked him. But 1) I was Maximum Ride, and I don't think I would really do something like that, and 2) Fang was still Fang. In other words, he was still out of my league. Besides, it was a perfectly good moment, the kind where it's just pure silence, and the only sound is your breathing, or in this case, also my really loud heart. It was the kind of silence where I want to scream everything out, and just wait for the sounds to echo back to me.

It was the kind of silence I would always want to remember sharing with Fang.

* * *

><p>"Ooh, Jasmine. Golly Max, I can't wait to see your costume."<p>

"Dad, that's really immature. Also, that's sort of gross."

Here we were again, at one of those Skype calls where Jeb still talks about how "cute" we'd be if Fang and I just got together (even if he still doesn't know what Fang looks like. I told him to get a Facebook account).

"Come on, haven't you always loved Aladdin?"

"I said I loved _watching_ Aladdin. Not staring in it. You know I can't sing."

"So that means the other girl who got the callback had worse singing. You know, Max, when you think something's horrible, always remember that there will be worse things than that."

So what was worse than me making a fool of myself in front of Fang?

"Hey, did mom tell you about the waiver thing?"

He adjusted his glasses and took a deep breath. "The two of us decided that you'll have to make your own decision. I mean, you are sixteen, and you are sort of grown up now."

"So if I said I wanted to kiss him in the play you'd be a hundred percent behind me? I'm not exactly legal."

"Yes. What are you going to decide on, anyway?"

I thought about what happened this afternoon, in the auditorium. Fang and I talking, him being mushy and bringing up a subject that I never thought he'd bring up. Was it possible that he was opening up to me? Was that because I was a complete stranger to him? Or should I believe in the impossible-that he actually liked me?

Sometimes I get tired of those kinds of questions, too.

I shook my head. "I'm not sure, though I think I wouldn't want to kiss him."

"That might be a good choice. You should also remember that boys have cooties, too."

"Dad!"

* * *

><p><em><strong>Friday<strong>_

No practice with Fang for today, sadly.

"Guys, I'm not moping." I told them for the millionth time as we walked to our next class. "He's not exactly absent or anything. He just canceled today's lesson. This isn't the first time, anyway."

"But Max, there's a difference between guitar and dancing. The two of you make actual contact and he's pretty open to you now." Nudge insisted.

"So why would I be all emo just because he cancelled? It's not like the play is in three days or something. I haven't even memorized my lines!"

"Nudge still has a point," Angel said. "Just not in her level of exaggeration. You guys are finally getting to know each other. Why would you waste an opportunity on that?"

"You know, I always wonder why we have this conversation every single day. Yes, I'm stubborn, yes, I realize I'm a realist, but why do you guys have to persuade me all the time when you know I'll never change my mind?"

The four of us were silent, the school crowd making noise around us. Finally, Ella spoke up. "You just have to keep hoping sometimes."

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><p>"You know, it's pretty funny when you say that." Tess said.<p>

Okay. So you're probably wondering why I'm talking with Tess and not practicing my lines with Iggy. Basically he's not here and has some doctor's appointment or something. Tess came here to the third floor stairwell, where we were supposed to practice, and told me. We ended up chatting for a while.

"You know, he acted strange the other day when we were practicing. Used the word nice and talked about stargazing. What did he eat?"

Tess leaned her head against the wall. "You'll get used to that when you hang out with him most of the time. He's just so random whenever he talks. And considering that he went all random in front of you, that means he trusts you."

"Oh. Sometimes I think about talking to a random stranger. Not on Omegle or anything, but talking to someone you know you barely know, and you know barely knows you. Do you get my point?"

"Yeah." She nodded. "You know, there was one time Fang was talking about this girl that he liked. Who knew Fang liked girls?"

I shrugged. Whoever she was, she was lucky. "There's this guy, who I know doesn't like me, but my friends keep on insisting that he likes me, too, and that we'd be perfect together."

She smiled. "It's always like that with everyone. Don't worry, you'll survive."

"I guess so."

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><p><strong>Okay, okay, I know this chapter isn't really good as compared to the previous one. Plus, it's pretty confusing, I mean, heck, I don't even remember why I put "Maybe" as the chapter title. To be honest, this one was sort of unplanned and loose, in other words a sort-of-filler, to "build up the tension" (if that was possible). And I admit that it's rushed.<strong>

**So let's just hope I'm not out of my mind.**

**I'll make this sort and sweet. Please review and tell me what you think! =D**


	18. Stars and Firsts

**Hey. I'll make this short =D. Sorry for the late post.**

**Thanks to lann, desperatelyobvious, TheCatWithBrownEyes, NHaqueWaters, xXTsuki-TenshiXx, Sierra156, Chocogirl124, BookWorm2011, MyLifeIsPathetic and aquamisfit. I totally appreciated your comments which may or may not have helped me get an idea on what to do the next chapter.**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own MR.**

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><p><em><strong>One Week Later, Saturday<strong>_

"The mind's really weird like that." Fang said as we danced, Iggy in the background, thumbing through his script, Tess helping him practice. This time, Tess insisted that she and Iggy tag along so 1) she can watch us dance, and 2) Iggy and I could "accommodate each other's dancing skills" (I don't know who said that, but it definitely was not me).

Iggy was glad that I we both didn't want to kiss in the play. Mrs. Dabseer understood, but she made us practice a lot so we could fake the kiss while making it look real, since I was supposed to be on a balcony and he was supposed to be standing on a floating carpet.

I know, I know, I might as well have no social life if I'm at school on a Saturday, doing work that is actually related to school. But according to Ella, it'd be perfectly fine if I skipped a night out for Fang. Or so, she says.

So why did Fang say the particularly deep sentence that I mentioned? Well, I sort of got used to talking while dancing, which Mrs. Dabseer says is good because I'll be singing while dancing. She's watched us dance a lot of times, sometimes me and Iggy, but most of the time with Fang, who she insists is better at teaching me than the actual choreographer of the whole production.

Back to the previous question, well, we get into pretty deep stuff (which Angel says is because Fang has a melancholic temperament, whatever that is) most of the time, but we're both trying to stay away from the love stuff, because it gets weirder after that. Then a while ago, while I was humming the lyrics in time with our steps, Fang suddenly brought up the time we sang in Music last year.

"It's really weird because I do remember it, but I don't really pay much attention to it, so it's like I've forgotten it."

I shrugged. "Me either. It's like it's in an attic in your brain, and it just sits there until you relive that memory again. It's so weird."

Fang nodded, and then said the aforementioned sentence: "The mind's really weird like that."

Tess and Iggy were oblivious to the conversation topic, but they did know we were talking. They're used to it, too, since they've seen Fang and I practice along with Mrs. Dabseer.

The imaginary music in our brain stops as I finish the last step and I heard Tess clap from behind us. We walked over to them and I took my script from where it was sitting on my bag.

"I can't believe I still can't remember all the lines." I groaned, sitting beside Iggy at the edge of the stage. Fang sat down right next to me. "How come you know all _your _lines? You have thrice as much!"

He shrugged. "Practice. And hey, at least you remember all the songs. You still have a lot of time anyway. More than a week, if I'm not mistaken."

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><p>Finally, after an hour and a half, the whole cast (who started arriving a couple of minutes after we practiced) was finished with another read-through and singing rehearsal, while the sets were made and costumes were designed. Fang became an all-purpose guide, helping with almost everything except for the music.<p>

"I think I can't handle any more talking for the rest of the day." Iggy said, as the four of us walked out of the main theater and into the late afternoon sun, other students right behind us. "I'm going. See ya."

We waved at Iggy as he walked to his car. Tess also lived a bit far from the school, so she said goodbye to us before getting into her car. Then it was just Fang and I, walking down a road which would later branch into two roads that led to our houses. I had approximately six and a half minutes left with Fang.

"So..." I started. This was pretty much how I filled in the awkward silence between the two of us.

"So..." he started, which was usually how he responded. Cue in more awkward silence.

I couldn't really deny that we were getting closer. But it was like we were becoming friends, which is either good or bad. Good, because friendship can end in love. Bad, because I can get stuck in what Nudge calls the "friend zone" and Fang will continue treating me like his little sister for the rest of my life.

"Do you really want to go stargazing?" Fang asked out of nowhere.

"Um, what?"

"Stargazing. I think it's going to be a clear night. C'mon, it's going to be fun."

A night. With Fang. Under the stars. Even if we're not an item. "Are Iggy and Tess coming?"

He shook his head. "Iggy's grounded for 'accidentally' making his cousin's tree house explode. Tess has some night out with a bunch of friends. Is that okay?"

"Yeah, I'm cool with it."

"So, do you want to go stargazing?"

"Um," Yes, yes, yes, yes, YES! "Sure. When and where?"

"How about tonight? Let's meet 8 PM at the clearing where we used to practice."

I nodded, trying hard to hide my enthusiasm. "Sure. I'll bring some hot chocolate."

He smiled, and it was the kind where he showed of his shiny teeth; so blindingly cute. DID I JUST USE THE WORD CUTE? "Cool. Meet you tonight?"

"Yeah."

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><p>"This better be good, Max." Nudge said as she entered my room.<p>

After I got home, I called Nudge, Ella and Angel and told them to come over to help me. To be honest, 1) I do not know an appropriate outfit for stargazing and 2) I'm sort of clueless about stargazing in general. Even if I just told them to come over without saying anything about the stargazing shindig, they must've sensed the importance of my call, because they came here in less than fifteen minutes though not at the same time.

"What do you know about stargazing?" I said, sitting down on my bed. Angel was sitting on my desk chair, Ella was sitting on the floor, picking up various pieces of clothing that I swear were clean, and Nudge was standing beside my closet door, ready for a fashion emergency I might have.

"Ooh, let me guess." Angel said, standing up with enthusiasm. "Fang asked you to go stargazing with him, no innuendo."

I nodded. "That's pretty much it."

And cue in some girly squealing from Nudge.

"So, you guys know anything about stargazing?" I asked, raising an eyebrow as Nudge opened the closet and started searching through the clothes they gave me, half of which I didn't even wear. "No skirts, Nudge." I called out. "Or skorts."

"Your mom allowed you to spend the night with him staring at a bunch of celestial bodies to which you can't tell the difference between?" Ella asked, which I was way too, well, not normal. She sort of does that when she's excited.

"She's asking if your mom allowed you to go." Angel explained.

"Um, yeah." At first mom was surprised because she doesn't know Fang that much, except for the fact that my cousin knows him and that he taught me on guitars and dancing. But since she did know that he's a good guy (because someone who's willing to teach me on two different fields that I have trouble mastering is really hard to find), she agreed. I was really glad she didn't mention anything relating to The Talk, since the most parental thing she said was to not sleep under the stars and go to Jamie's since it was nearest, and to text her if such thing was going to happen. Plus, she was more than enthusiastic to make the hot chocolate, which was an added bonus.

"Stargazing?" Nudge said, while piling a bunch of shirts in one arm and getting them off the rack with the other. "I'm pretty sure you use binoculars if you're a beginner."

I nodded, pointing to a pair of binoculars I snatched from the Gasman's room.

"You have a map?" Ella asked, sitting on my desk chair (Angel was standing beside it, since she never did sit down after the revelation thing) and turning on my computer.

"Well, no. But I did get a copy of _Sky & Telescope_, which I think has a map." I said, picking up the said magazine and showing it to them.

"Did you now that if your shuffle the letters of 'astronomer' you'll get 'moon starer'?" Nudge said as she put down a couple of shirts on my bed along with some jeans, thankfully.

"Yeah." I said, removing tops that were either too fancy for a night out under the stars or were too cleavage-dependent, since I obviously did not have any cleavage for the tops to depend on. "So, what else do I need to know?"

The three of them looked at each other before shrugging at the same time. "Not much," Ella said. "I'm pretty sure he knows more than you, or else he wouldn't have invited you."

We spent the rest of the afternoon looking at maps and deciding on what to wear (which Nudge mostly did) and what other essentials to bring. No you're-just-oblivious-to-the-fact-that-Fang-likes-you talks, thankfully, since they know that I'll always be "pessimistic" (more like realistic) and say that it was a little annoying to have that conversation again.

They all know that I'm hoping, anyway.

* * *

><p>I saw Fang sitting on the swings, his bag on the ground.<p>

"Hey," I said, sitting on the swing next to him. "So…"

"Yeah, we should go to the clearing." He said, standing up and picking up his bag and brushing off the dirt at the bottom. "Before the hot chocolate gets cold. I brought some marshmallows."

I smiled and got up, the very, very tiny girly portion of my brain disappointed that he didn't hold out his hand to help me stand out. I chose to wear, some classic-cut jeans and a plain white tank top with a cardigan over it, since it was pretty darn cold. My hair was up in a ponytail, with a couple of shorter strands left at the side, so I sort of looked like I had bangs. Fang was in his usual black ensemble. I had to admit, we looked like burglars. Okay, that was a really weird thought

We made our way to the clearing, which after months of guitar lessons with Fang, I could walk to blindfolded. Fang was right; it was a pretty clear night, and you could still see most stars, since we were far from a busy city.

"Pretty clear night." I said as we dodged a couple of branches.

"It's okay." He said, holding back a branch and letting me pass. So gentleman, I know. "I've seen clearer."

"Climbed a mountain at night?"

"Yeah."

After a minute or two of walking, we finally reached the clearing, which didn't change much, except that the grass grew a little. Other than that, it still looked like the same place we played songs by artists like Natalie Imbruglia and Stephen Speaks during freshman years. Good times.

"Nothing really changed, huh?" I commented as Fang spread out a blanket and getting his binoculars and maps out.

"Yeah." He said, sitting down.

I sat down beside him. "Care for some hot chocolate?"

He smiled, and I know this is pretty girly of me to say, but it was so bright. As bright as the stars. "I'd love some."

I took out two Styrofoam cups and poured in the hot chocolate mom prepared, while he got out a small pack of marshmallows and put some in them.

"Tastes great." He said after taking a sip. "So you want to start looking at celestial bodies?"

I nod, looking at the maps he took out. "Which one first?"

He looked at the map at the middle, then looked up at the sky and pointed at a particular star. "See those?" He asked, drawing lines that connected the stars into a constellation.

"The Centaur, right?" I asked. "Centaurus."

He nodded, and then pointed to one particular star. "That one's Alpha Centauri. It's named like that because it's the brightest star of the constellation."

"Oh. Sorry, I'm not really an expert when it comes to identifying stars. This is pretty much my first time stargazing."

"It's okay," he said, and like last week, when he first brought up stargazing, he lay down on the blanket.

"To be honest, just looking at the stars is nice. I mean, isn't that the most basic form of stargazing ?"

"Yeah." He said. "But it's more fun to actually connect them and know that you're connecting them right."

"Touché." I said. "So an astronomy lesson it is?"

"Not this time. Just more of relaxing and playing connect the dots."

"Lead the way then."

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><p>Max and I stayed at the clearing for two hours until we both decided to stop gazing at stars and to go home. Well, I'm went home and she said she was going to spend the night at her cousin's.<p>

"Thanks," She said, as we both packed up our things. "I had a lot of fun."

"Me too." I said, folding the blanket that we both sat on. "I haven't done this in months."

"I guess your knowledge of astronomy is another hidden talent the school has yet to learn about?"

I shrugged. "Something like that."

We finished packing and we walked to my neighborhood, where her cousin also lived.

"Thanks again." She said while we waited for her cousin to unlock the door.

"Yeah. Thanks for coming with me, too. Way better than doing this alone."

She smiled. And the next thing I knew, we were hugging. Don't get me wrong, I've been hugged before, not just by my mom and my weird aunts. But _the _Maximum Ride hugging me? That was definitely a first. And me actually hugging back, also deemed impossible. It was soon over, and her sort of sleep-deprived cousin opened the door, letting her in. She smiled and waved. I slightly twitched my mouth and waved back. Then I turned my back and started walking towards my house.

I flashed back on the small hugging scene we made. Her hugging. Me hugging back. That was definitely weird; a definite first.

There's always a first time for everything.

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><p><strong>Yay! Sorry for the late post. =D<strong>

**Relating to the chapter's main event, have you ever been stargazing? I haven't yet, but when I'm at my grandmother's place, which is in a rural area, I always like looking at the night sky since I can see a million more stars than at my place.**

**Also, a couple of questions:**

**How do you think will Max confess her love to Fang?**

**Which is better, Miggy or Mylan? Fax is obviously the best pairing with Max, but I'm curious about which of the two is second best.**

**Where do you like the Fax trials best? Before or during the relationship?**

**That's pretty much it. Review and let me know what you think! =D**


	19. The Play

**I'm back =D. This chapter used more planning than usual, but hey, your reviews helped =D.**

**Thanks once again to heelloo, ThEAnGeLOfChArItY, MyLifeIsPathetic, NHaqueWaters, Chocogirl24, desperatelyobvious, fnickforever, JealousMindsThinkAlike, Yesmeen, zammie2thefax, TheCatWithBrownEyes, BookWorm2011, lapislazuliie, aquamisfit, and WritingAngel304. I was really flattered, as I am every time someone says that I "did (put any positive word/s here)".**

**NOTICE: I know it's been 18 FREAKING CHAPTERS and nothing really big has been happening yet, but that is because this is only Part 2 of 4. So I'll be sticking around for about 20 more chapters. That doesn't necessarily mean it would be the same old Max-sort-of-but-not-really-pining-for-him chapters. So if you have any Fax suggestions, now is a good time =D.**

**Anyway, on with it.**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own MR.**

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><p>Weirdest night of my life.<p>

I had a little midnight snack, to Jamie's disapproval. I changed into my favorite PJ's, the one with black angel wings on them. I brushed my teeth. Twice. I combed my hair, and then gave up after a minute and a half of trying to untangle the first three inches. I listened to at least a quarter of the songs on my iPod, then gave up after hearing songs I didn't know I have thanks to putting it on shuffle. I stared at the ceiling, imagining some of the constellations Fang taught me about. I tried to sleep, flipping my pillow three times in the process.

But I still couldn't stop thinking about that hug.

I'm pretty sure it was an awkward, just sort-of-friends hug. Who started it, anyway? If I started it (though I'm pretty sure I did), how did Fang react? Surely he had positive thoughts, since he hugged back. And that means I'm one step ahead. I just hope he really meant that, and it wasn't some sort of impulse.

I'm no girly-girl. But I felt like one, for that night and that night only. That's still bad news, though.

Will this madness ever stop?

* * *

><p>After having breakfast at Jamie's and replying to the 10,000 texts Nudge, Ella and Angel sent last night asking how the stargazing session went, I started making my way back home, still thinking, of course.<p>

"How was the night?" Mom asked, as soon as I entered the kitchen.

I shrugged. "It was cool. I learned a lot of astronomy stuff-"

"Which you'll probably forget." The Gasman said as he entered the kitchen.

I grabbed a muffin off the counter and took a bite. "True, true." I said in between chewing.

"Well, according to Jamie, you didn't look like you 'just came back from the all-night bowling alley'," Mom said, making air-quotes. "So I'm sure you had a good time."

I blushed, though I was weirded out by my cousin thinking that I would've… done… _that_. I mean, he was one of the people that agreed with Angel, who said that my eyes were like unbarfed chocolates. Even if he didn't know about the whole story.

"Oh, and by the way, when are you going to perform?" She asked.

I looked at the calendar nearby. "I think it's Friday next week. I'm not really sure."

"Good luck."

* * *

><p><em><strong>Monday<strong>_

"Tell us, tell us, tell us, tell us, TELL US." Nudge said in a sing-song voice as we sat down on our regular table at Auntie Marie's. Ella looked just as excited, her head nodding enthusiastically while Angel gave a semi-creepy I-sort-of-know-what-happened smile.

I told them _almost_ everything. For some unknown reason, I never told them about The Hug, but they seemed intent on every detail, even if I was just telling them about Fang pointing on some part of the night sky and saying a random constellation name.

"I swear it's not pure luck, Max." Angel said, practically bouncing on her seat, even if she didn't drink coffee or Gatorade for that matter.

I shrugged. "I don't really know what to believe, either. But for the benefit of staying sane, I'll be betting on the realistic-slash-sort-of-pessimistic reason."

Surprisingly, Ella nodded. "Expectation, after all, is the root of all heartache."

"How's _Aladdin_, by the way?" Angel asked.

"The usual practices, costume fittings, dance rehearsals-like the lessons with Fang-and several read-through's, too. I swear it's harder than my Biology homework."

"Well, at least you get to work with Fang." Nudge added. "I mean, every time you hang out with him, there's this new, undiscovered skill inside of him. My theory is that he does all that to impress you and spend more time with you."

I shrugged again, though Nudge's concept did seem good. Or maybe it really was. "Maybe, but I don't think Fang's that kind of guy."

But he just might surprise me.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Thursday, 10 days later<strong>_

One more day. One more day and I will finally be free of any duty that involves singing, acting, and dancing. One more day and I might not have any other personal contact with Fang for the rest of the school year, even if the four of us created a mutual friendship with the three of them.

The cast, which included me and Iggy and a bunch of dedicated drama geeks got into costume. The dance group, which included Nudge, were practicing their final routines. The music, which included a couple of band members, were practicing the songs with the instruments near the stage. Members of the arts club were busy adding final touches to the props.

"I see all of you have prepared." Mrs. Dabseer said as we entered the stage. "Positions everyone!"

Mrs. Dabseer (literally) hollered for the music to start and for the dance group to stop practicing and to prepare. The arts club rushed backstage to retrieve the giant lion head that was supposed to be the Cave of Wonders.

"Places, places!" Mrs. Dabseer called out once again. The student who was supposed to play the peddler quickly grabbed the prop camel someone handed out and the rest of us made our way backstage.

"Action!"

The music started, and as the peddler belted out his lines, I couldn't resist looking at Fang, who was somewhere in the first few rows. The usual black ensemble, the usual poker face, though he twitched his mouth a little at some of the amusing parts of the song. No offense to Iggy, but Fang's olive skin and dark hair looked more in character than his pale skin and strawberry blond hair.

I wish Fang was Aladdin.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Friday Night<strong>_

This is it. This really is it.

We stayed after school to rehearse one last time, and after taking a quick shower at home, went back to the theater and changed into my costume, which was sort of like Jasmine's but in a darker color and a couple of tweaks in the top. I wore a jacket over it (since it was really cold) and went over to where Tess was doing the dancers' make up, since God knows I have no knowledge about cosmetics.

"You look great!" Tess said after finishing with the last dancer and taking a quick glance at me. "Sit down. Hey, Jeanne, do her hair!"

Another girl approached me and started blow-drying my still damp hair, while Tess searched through the desk for an appropriate color.

"Don't worry," Tess said as she started applying some foundation. "Mrs. Dabseer didn't want us to put too much make up on you. This should take at least five minutes, with your hair."

Five minutes. I closed my eyes and started counting. One... two... three... four...

* * *

><p>Two hundred ninety-eight... two hundred ninety-nine...<p>

"We're done," Tess said, and I opened my eyes. She motioned towards the full length mirror. I took a deep breath and walked to the mirror, before I could change my mind. And I looked darn...

Great. No, seriously. Believe it or not, I actually looked great. At least the bit of makeup did the magic. Plus the hair, which was done in a simple French braid (Note to self: Ask Mom if she knows how to do a French braid. Ask if she could do it for me.).

"You look good."

The owner of the voice was Fang, of course. He and Iggy-who was also in his costume, fez and all-walked up to me. Fang was in his typical black ensemble.

"Yo," Iggy said, and fist-bumped me.

"Shouldn't you be back in the audience?" I asked Fang, rubbing my arms even if they were totally warm inside the jacket.

He shrugged. "I volunteered to help out a little."

Someone called Fang and he left, then Iggy was approached by Mrs. Dabseer to give him some last minute instructions.

"I told you you'd look good with a little make up." Nudge said as she approached me. She had a little more makeup than I did, and her costume was like a belly dancer's. Her hair was in large curls, and she had body glitter all over.

"You look good, too." I said as she checked her reflection in the mirror.

"There are a lot of people out there." She said as we navigated our way backstage. "Even the balcony seats are filled."

"Are my mom and Gazzy there?" I asked.

She nodded. "They're somewhere in the front with Angel and Ella."

"God, this is making me so nervous."

"Oh, relax. You don't have that much scenes."

"But-"

"Maximum!" Mrs. Dabseer called out. "The play is almost starting!"

"You can do it Max. You can do it." Nudge said. I quickly removed my jacket and rushed over to where Mrs. Dabseer was. Both of us made our way near the stage, right after the peddler came out. Iggy and Fang and the rest of the actors were all there, watching, and I arrived just in time to hear a freshman student who played the genie complain, "I look like a vampire smurf with all this body glitter."

"Very true." I muttered, making my way to where Fang and Iggy were and standing between them. The song had already started, and the audience watched the peddler move all over the stage with his prop camel.

"Max!" Tess hissed, and I turned to see her holding a small jar of body glitter. No way.

"Relax," She whispered. "It's just going to be a little on your collar bones."

I reluctantly allowed her to smear a little body glitter on me. It was worth it though, because after Tess said, "You look better now," Fang slightly nodded his head. We watched the next scene, and then it was Iggy's turn to come out.

"You'll do great, Ig." Fang said as they fist-bumped each other.

"He's good." I said as we watched him sing his heart out and dance all over the props while the guards chased him. "Way better than I am."

"You're good, too."

"Excuse me?"

He shrugged. "I've seen you practice."

"And when have you been such a good critic?"

"I've been in a couple of productions back in our old school when Iggy used to insist that I audition with him."

I raised an eyebrow. "Is there anything you can't do?"

"I can't do a lot of things, Max. I'm not exactly perfect. I even have a list of them."

"What do you do with the list?"

He thought about it for a moment before shrugging. "I just look at it."

"Jasmine! You're up." Mrs. Dabseer called out.

* * *

><p>So far, I was great. I didn't really know what act it was already (since I'm sort of clueless about drama, too), but I went through more than half my scenes. Mrs. Dabseer said that I was "princess-like", though she was pretty skeptic about my floor-collapsing skills.<p>

"Chill out Max," someone told me, which was the third or fourth time someone told me to relax. I mean, how hard can it be? I'll just be doing the song which made the movie famous which was sung by the same person who sang the song in Mulan, right? No pressure. I'm not doing the highlight of the show, right?

Wrong.

"Max," Fang said, snapping his fingers in front of me, which was very un-Fang-like. "You _can_ do it."

"How can I not be worried? I'm going to do the part of the show that everyone's been waiting for." I reasoned as we sidestepped to avoid the balcony prop that the arts club members (who were clad in black, just like ninjas) were pushing towards the stage.

"Maximum!" Mrs. Dabseer called out. I turned to walk to the stage, but Fang grabbed my arm in a sweet and non-threatening way. And even if I did like him, I was going to give him (temporary) hell for having Mrs. Dabseer give me hell by being late.

My mind changed when he kissed me, though.

Knowing Fang, he wasn't the type to give a full-on kiss on the lips. I guess he was going to give me a decent "good luck" kiss on the cheek, but I accidentally-I swear it was-moved my head and we brushed lips. For a second. Then I turned my head back again and the kiss ended on the cheek.

"You'll do great." He said, sounding unfazed by the lip-brushing. But him being an average person, I knew better.

"Thanks." I said, and then ran to the stage, preparing to sing and dance my heart out.

* * *

><p>She's a good dancer. I know because I've seen her dance, with and without music. She's the kind of person who just stopped thinking and started going with the flow. But she didn't know that. She kept on insisting she was going to ruin the moment. She was wrong, anyway.<p>

I stood there, watching Iggy and Max dance and sing to _A Whole New World_. I watched her move her feet in time in the music, the same way I taught her to.

"_A whole new world/a dazzling place I never knew/but when I'm way up here/it's crystal clear/that now I'm in a whole new world with you!"_ She sang as Iggy twirled her. She treats her singing like she does with her dancing. She thinks they don't exist, and that she's as bad as any glee club reject. We know she's not trying to be humble, and we refuse to believe that she's bad at both.

I knew Max didn't intend to turn her head. I knew that she knew that I didn't mean to kiss her on the lips. I didn't know if I did it on impulse, or if I just wanted to be the better person. I had just intended to calm her down with a kiss on the cheek. But I got a really strong feeling right after we brushed lips.

I just had to find out if they were good or bad.

* * *

><p><strong>Yay! One last chapter before I go to Part 3, though I'm not sure if I'll be doing ten chapters again.<strong>

**I hoped you guys liked this, though in my opinion, I think the first (after stargazing) and last (play) were the really appealing ones, and the rest are like fillers. I sincerely apologize for that.**

**Also, I'd appreciate any forms of questions, suggestions, or comments, since they're the ones that give me an idea on what to do for the next chapters. =D**

**Thanks! =D.**


	20. The After Party

**It's been a (sort of) crazy week for me. Thanks to PEACELOVINGIRL, Sierra156, Another Winged Soul, fnickforever, Chocogirl24, Ch Ch Ch Ch Ch Cherry Bomb, JealousMindsThinkAlike, TheCatWithBrownEyes, NHaqueWaters, Randomly Obsessed, desperatelyobvious, Bacon lover 2000, Xx-Twitch-xX, aquamisfit, BookWorm2011, and lapislazuliie. I'm glad all of you don't mind with the story length thing.**

**On with it…**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own MR.**

* * *

><p>The play was a success, of course.<p>

For quite obvious reasons, Mrs. Dabseer decided to hold an after party at the Drama Club president's house, exclusively for the cast, the club members, the dancers, and everyone else who helped.

Everyone, especially the cast, was now make-up free with normal clothes on, including me. I was practically the only person who dressed up like the average person who was staying at home on a Saturday night. Until Nudge "saved" me. Or so, she says. I was walking around, with everyone congratulating me on doing a good job, until she grabbed me by the arm, and dragged me with her to the bathroom, where Tess was waiting.

"What the heck are you guys doing?" I asked, rubbing my arm where she left an imprint of her hand.

"Relax, we asked Mrs. Dabseer and the club president for permission." She said, and pulled out a neatly folded dress I recognized from the never-going-to-use pile in my closet. Tess, sensing my instinct to escape, blocked the door.

"I'm not going to wear that." I said, crossing my arms defiantly. I guess that didn't work, because after fifteen minutes of brutal torture (a.k.a. making me change into the dress; turns out Tess is pretty darn strong), I was wearing the dress.

"Where are the shoes?" Nudge asked, looking disapprovingly at my black Converse.

"Wait a sec…" Tess said, and started to search in her bag while Nudge blocked the door, which is pretty poor planning on their part. I mean, I wouldn't want to fight with Tess, since she's still a complete stranger to me. But Nudge? We've been sparring since we were eight. And she's my friend, who I know will give me temporary hell, but will not hate me forever.

I grabbed my original clothes and my jacket, pushed Nudge firmly from the door, and then got out and ran away as fast as I could, while trying to put on my jacket (since not all dresses have sleeves, and it was pretty darn cold).

Then I ran into Fang.

After the… kiss… well, I never really got to talk to him. After that scene were the more complicated ones, with the bad guy wishing for a lot of stuff among world domination and whatnot. We never even got to make eye contact with each other. I wasn't even expecting to talk to him directly after the play, but Mrs. Dabseer made the after party a surprise, and I had to go since I was Jasmine.

So I ran into Fang in a girly dress, a leather jacket, black converse and more comfortable clothes in my hand. But Fang, being the emotionless brick wall he is, didn't wince in my sight, like I probably did.

"You okay?" He asked, grabbing my wrist to help me balance.

"Yeah," I said, brushing off imaginary dust off my jacket sleeves.

"You look better, by the way." He said.

I had two options. No, screw that. Make it _three_: a) Have a normal conversation with Fang and act as if nothing happened; b) Have a short normal conversation with Fang and then casually bring up The Kiss; and c) Run away.

I chose C. So I gently shook off his wrist and ran in the direction away from him, which lead to the backyard. I couldn't exactly ask to change back, since Mrs. Dabseer and the Drama Club president are on Tess' and Nudge's sides. Changing in a car was never going to happen, even if I had my own car. The only idea on my mind was to go home and tell Mom that I felt a little sick and decided to go home early. I edged my way across the Drama Club crowd talking by the pool and almost got to the gate before Dylan stopped me.

Dylan was there. Dylan, who I should mention ALREADY GRADUATED and WAS NOT INVITED BY ANYONE. He grabbed my wrist in a not-so-affectionate way and dragged me to one of the corners with the hedges.

"What the heck are you doing here?" I asked, trying to get his hand off my wrist with my other hand.

He shrugged nonchalantly. "I'm a party crasher. Just dropped by to congratulate you and, oh, get back at you." He smiled. "You looked pretty hot in costume by the way. You should wear more outfits like those."

I may have said a couple of choice swear words along with any adjective that was synonymous to the words loser, jerk, and heterosexual asshole, along with a couple of kicks below the knee. But Dylan still kept a stone grip on my right hand (I'm right handed, by the way) and he was still smiling like a pedophile, which is creepy since he's only three years older. And then, just like déjà vu, someone tapped him on the shoulder, and he turned around only to get punched, this time by Fang.

Guy fights and girl fights are basically the same, save for the fighting style. Girls always focus on the "most important asset" (Nudge's words, not mine), which is the hair, which gives good reason for the technique. That, and because hair is the nearest thing you can grab unless it's tied back into a ponytail. Guys may do some hair pulling if their opponent has long hair, but they're more into the pushing and punching. That was what the two of them were doing. Cue in the crowd of typically hormonal teenagers shouting, "Fight! Fight! Fight!" and cheering for any one of them, Fang mainly. Zoom out the camera, and the typically responsible teacher will be seen approaching the said crowd, but then the said teacher will still be far or might also come to cheer on one of the fighters.

"What is going on?" Mrs. Dabseer asked, cutting through the crowd, just in time to see Fang push Dylan into the pool and get splashed by the cold water. Everyone cheered, but the fight was still far from over with the look on Dylan's face. As Fang was about to back out from the pool, Dylan reached the edge, grabbed his ankle, and pulled him into the pool. Pushing was pretty hard in water, so they resorted to punching. The crowd continued cheering until Mrs. Dabseer ordered someone to pull Dylan out of the water, since he was starting to wear Fang out.

"Happy now?" Dylan asked me, sarcasm dripping from his voice. I walked up to him and slapped him, but didn't work much since his cheek was still wet and slippery. So I ended up kicking him where it counts, which looked weird since I was wearing a dress.

"I'm happy now." I said and the guy holding Dylan dragged him off into Mrs. Dabseer's direction. I walked up to the pool where Fang was still standing in, an amused look in his face. The crowd had cleared out and most of them went back inside to see Mrs. Dabseer give a sermon.

"Need any help?" I asked, holding out my hand on impulse. His mouth twitched and he took it, then got out of the pool and shook his head like a dog.

"Thanks," he said, then held up my wrist under the light. "That's some bruise."

"It'll get better in a couple of days."

"Yo Fang, need a shirt?" Iggy asked, waving a black shirt as he made his way toward us, a towel in the other hand.

He removed his jacket and squeezed it a little before hanging it on a lawn chair. Either Fang didn't care or he had no shame, because he removed his shirt then and there. Not that a lot of people were watching. In fact, I'm pretty sure only Iggy and I saw him take his shirt off. Fang may be lean, but you can definitely see a six pack on him.

A shirtless Fang I can handle. Wait, NO, I definitely cannot handle a shirtless Fang. A wet _and_ shirtless Fang? There are no words for that.

Fortunately and unfortunately, the moment only lasted for a minute and he started wiping himself dry before quickly putting on the dry shirt and tossing back the towel to Iggy.

"Thanks." He said, and they high-fived before Iggy left.

"Thanks," I said, and he turned around, almost surprised.

"For what?" He asked.

"For saving me back there."

He grinned. "You're welcome."

He turned around to go back to the house where the party resumed. I followed him, retrieved my things, and started walking home.

We practically saved each other, but we still didn't get to talk about The Kiss.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Saturday Morning<strong>_

When I want to think, I run. That's exactly what I did. I woke up really early and tiptoed out in order not to wake up Mom or The Gasman. I ran, randomly picking directions until I realized I was heading towards the park. In a few minutes, I reached the clearing where we used to play guitar and stopped, then lay down on the grass.

I closed my eyes and started to do what I did worst: think. Think what to tell Fang. Think what Fang might tell me. Think what might happen after that. Think how it's going to affect me. Think, think, think.

"People usually sleep during the night." I heard someone say. And by someone, I mean Fang.

I opened my eyes. Fang was sitting right beside me, freshly showered with his hair still wet. He was in the same old black ensemble I'd come to know and (sometimes) love, with a hand on his guitar case.

"Good morning to you, too." I said, sitting up, suddenly odor-conscious. "What are you doing here, anyway?"

He shrugged. "I just wanted to relax and maybe think a while."

"What do you think about?"

He shrugged again. "Sometimes I think about stuff from school. My mind's on the family most of the time."

"Oh." I said. It was obvious that he also didn't really want to talk about the kiss.

"How about you? What are you doing here?"

"I was just running. Then, I got tired, and since I reached the park, I just decided to rest here and, well, lie down for a couple of minutes." Well, it's not the truth. But it's not like I lied, either.

"I've been thinking." He said after a couple of minutes of silence.

I lay back down on the grass. "Thinking about what? School and your parents?"

"Right now, it's more on school, I guess. You know, last night…"

"What? You pushed Dylan in a pool. He pulled you into the same pool. You had a guy fight. And it's not like I hate you for saving my ass out back there."

He shook his head. "Not about that. You know, before that, during the play, when we… you know…"

Oh. The Kiss. As tempting as it sounds, I would very much love to say "I don't know," or any other witty comment. But then, I wouldn't want to ruin the moment. "When we kissed?"

"Yeah."

"I'm cool with it. I mean, I knew you intended to kiss me on the cheek. I know you know that I wasn't intending on turning my head either."

"Yeah; I know, too. I just intended to calm you down. You were a nervous wreck, and everyone thought you were going to explode by the second act. And, well, you don't look very beautiful when you're very nervous."

I smiled. "I don't?"

He turned to me and twitched one side of his mouth in a half-smile. "You don't. You look prettier when you're happy. And when you smile, like right now."

"Thanks. I hope you meant that."

"I did. To be honest, I felt something when we… kissed."

"Me too, I guess. I felt better after that. Especially now that I know you just wanted to stop me from exploding all over and ruining everyone's night." I sat up and checked my watch. "I have to go now. I still haven't showered, you know."

"Sure." He said, standing up. I followed, and brushed the dirt off my legs. Then he kissed me, this time on the cheek.

"Keep smiling." He said. "You look prettier with it on."

I smiled, and blushed a little. "Thanks. See you on Monday?"

He nodded. "Yeah."

I ran all the way home with a hand on the cheek where he kissed me. The Kiss last night was for some comfort. The Kiss now?

I had to find out what that one was for.

* * *

><p><strong>Part 2 is now officially over =D.<strong>

**I was planning to upload this earlier, but then I checked my inbox, and look at that, my Hogwarts Acceptance Letter! It was actually the Pottermore welcome email, but what the heck? They're pretty much the same. (You can add me by the way. CastleRain4 from Slytherin =D.)**

**By the way, I would like to thank Bacon Lover 2000 for the suggestion and fnickforever for the inspiration on this chapter. I admit that I never thought of this, and was planning on a weirder, more boring ending.**

**I hope you guys stay for Part 3 =D. That, and I also hope you guys review and give me your opinion on this chapter. Thanks!**

**=D**


	21. Thou Hast Conquered All of Me!

**PART 3! Yay! =D**

**Hey guys =D. Sorry I didn't get to update last week. Please blame exams. Details are in the A/N at the end =D.**

**Thank, thank you, thank you to JealousMindsThinkAlike, Another Winged Soul, desperatelyobvious, Chocogirl24, fnickforever, Yesmeen, SnowWhite, TheCatWithBrownEyes, babiixilyx3, No namer44, MyLifeIsPathetic, aquamisfit, WhatIsLove, and BookWorm2011.**

**NOTE: Dylan was introduced in Chapter 7, and was a senior during Max's freshman year.**

**Also, be warned that Part 3 is a lot more different compared to the other parts. There are going to be more… complications.**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own MR.**

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><p><em><strong>Late May<strong>_

Is love still in the air? Based on the number of couples I've seen exchanging saliva in the past couple of weeks, I'd say it is. Or maybe I just missed the memo that it's make-out season.

I'm a junior now. That's at least one thousand, two hundred and forty-six days of not confessing to Fang. But then again, I never did promise I was going to confess. And speaking of that:

Q:_ What happened after the kiss in the clearing?_

A: Same old. Iggy, Tess, and maybe Fang sort of formed a bond with the four of us. So we hang out sometimes, but only at school.

Q: _Did you ever talk about _that_ kiss?_

A: No. I never told anyone about it, too. Fang didn't even talk about anything remotely close to that topic.

Q: _Did you and Fang maintain contact over the summer?_

A: No, sadly. Fang is not a texting addict, nor does he breathe technology. Actually I'm not sure what he did over the summer. But I'm pretty sure there was some sort of family thing going on.

Those may or may not be the questions and answers that may or may not have ruined my summer.

"I think you should change the color, dear," Mrs. Dabseer said, glancing in my direction while a drama club member showed her a drawing on a clipboard. "I suggest paler and more earth tones."

The designer nodded and walked of to find the rest of her team. Mrs. Dabseer, on the other hand, clapped her hands loudly. "Let's get into position people. Scene two, parts five and six."

The words _Mrs. Dabseer_, _act_, _scene_, and _drama club member_ obviously only lead to one thing: the Drama Club. And me mentioning the Drama Club can only lead to another thing: I'm acting._ Again_. But this year is different. I'm doing a regular play instead of a musical: Cyrano de Bergerac. It was more of a presentation for a special audience (which included a person or two known in theater) than a school play.

Upon the announcement, everyone was short of shocked. I mean, last year Mrs. Dabseer did make me audition. This year was an invitation, and I could've turned it down. Everyone was expecting me to turn it down. But everyone else invited to perform-most from last year's _Aladdin_, which was really successful- accepted the offer. And besides, it was too good to refuse.

Because Fang was playing Cyrano.

I know, I know. Fang's invitation and his acceptance was also another shocker to the theater community. My first thought when I heard he was actually going to be Cyrano: _WTF?_

After that, all of my thoughts about the said issue became: _He's too handsome to play Cyrano. And I'm too… normal-looking to be Roxane. Actually, I'm not even _close_ to normal-looking._

Anyway, it's a good thing Mrs. Dabseer isn't including the nose in the costume.

Compared to Cyrano de Bergerac, my story with Fang is quite different. I mean, the pretty-ugly thing is a similarity if you reverse the roles, but it ends there. He's not in some military org. I'm not some countess or whatever. And even if the roles were reversed, there would still be more differences. I'm not poetic, nor am I smart. And I don't have a very attractive friend who likes Fang and is willing to let me write love letters for her to be given to him. And if I did have one, I'm pretty sure Fang wouldn't really like the said attractive friend.

Like _Aladdin_, I'm not really planning on kissing anyone in the play. But if Fang was the one who was going to kiss me, then... well... I don't know if I still want to. I mean, yes, I like Fang, but I'm pretty sure that it would be really awkward if I kiss someone I like who might not like me back.

My actual game plan? I don't actually have any. I never had any. I guess my only motive is to spend as much time with Fang as possible without too much awkward silences. Mainly to look at him. Other than that, the only other things I get by spending time with Fang in this play is a truckload of lines that I barely understand and some major scolding from Mrs. Dabseer for not acting lady-like during practices. But the benefit of knowing he was there and he was paying attention to what I was doing or saying was enough to cover that up. On one hand, it also made things worse because I was turning boy-conscious. Like I knew what he did, what he said, and when he was looking at me every time. I mean, liking him was enough, but turning almost crazy and stalker-ish? Not my plan.

I never really did intend to spend more than one thousand, two hundred and forty-six days of my high school life pining for Fang.

* * *

><p>"Max, Max, Max," Nudge said, shaking her head in a disappointed manner and making a tsk-sound. "You are such a hopeless case."<p>

I looked up from my worn-out copy of the script. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"When we first entered high school, we expected you to start beating boys up. Not pining for them. Or for at least one of them."

"Who said I was pining for him? I mean, I don't spend my Friday nights stalking his Facebook page." I can't believe we were having one of these talks again.

"That's irrelevant; he doesn't even use his Facebook page." Nudge replied.

"Yeah, and when you like and sort of think about the same guy for more than two years without going on a date with him once, that can already be considered pining." Angel pointed out.

"Did you not consider the stargazing shindig as a date? I mean, when I told you everything, you guys told me that he sounded like he was asking me out. And I told everything to you verbatim."

"Then focus on the words _sounded like_."

"Then what do you want me to do? It's not like we're not busy. I mean, I have the play and the studying to catch up on. And he has the play and some family thing. And…"

"And what?" Ella asked, suddenly looking up from her book.

"And he's sort of spending his time with Tess now." I replied. This year they were closer, with them having more conversations with each other whenever the seven of us hung out.

"True, true." Angel said, tapping her chin in deep thought. "But that doesn't mean they're dating, right?"

"So if they're not dating, then why?"

She thought for a moment before shrugging. "I don't exactly know, but the vibes that they're giving off aren't exactly the 'we're dating' type."

"Are you sure?"

She looked at me with a raised eyebrow. "Have I ever been wrong about the vibes?"

"Point taken."

* * *

><p><em><strong>3 Days Later<strong>_

"Come on people," Mrs. Dabseer called out. "Finish Parts Six, Eight, and Nine and I'll be happy."

Parts Six, Eight, and Nine was none other than the balcony scene, which according to Mrs. Dabseer was a parody of the one in Romeo and Juliet. I quickly climbed on the balcony prop, trying to avoid most of the wet paint, and watched as Fang and Iggy, who was going to play Christian, prepare. The two students who were going to play the pages stood by the side.

"Action!" Mrs. Dabseer said, and Fang and Iggy started talking, none of their dialog understandable. The pages appeared, and they talked for a few moments before the two left. It was almost time for me to enter.

To tell the truth, these parts were my favorite since Fang and I got to talk to each other, him saying half-confusing speeches about love. The girl part of me was thrilled, since I know Fang will never do this to me because 1) I'm sure he doesn't like me that much, 2) I might fall asleep if he does it at night, 3) I might be confused by his poetry, and 4) I don't have a freaking balcony. Actually, none of the houses in our neighborhood have balconies.

Iggy started his lines, while I acted like the modern disappointed girl with the look on my face. He was good at the faltering thing, but Mrs. Dabseer always said that the pauses were _too_ dramatic. Very Iggy-like.

_Last one_, I thought, and waited until the two of them switched places. The scene would, of course, have dim lighting for dramatic effect, but the best part was always the words. They were a bit complicated, but it was what made me like the story. According to Ella, it made her appreciate the nerds who tried to write horrible-but-still-good poetry.

Hey, at least the aforementioned nerds weren't like Christian. He sort of makes the weatherman look good for once.

"Stay awhile!" Fang said, which was actually his next line. "'Tis sweet… The rare occasion, when our hearts can speak. Ourselves unseen, unseeing!"

Fang may be hot, but he sounded really cheesy when it came to saying Cyrano's verses. I don't know if that was why Mrs. Dabseer wanted him to be Cyrano, but Nudge (and I sort of) think that he would sound better with modern English, and a couple of "you knows" in between the verses. But then he would still sound cheesy.

The two of us continued the dialogue, and I said one of my favorite lines: "Ay! I am trembling, weeping! I am thine! Thou hast conquered all of me!" Not that I agree, because it's not like I'm that crazy for Fang. It just sounds so romantic. But then the moment was ruined when Iggy interrupted with "A kiss!"

Honestly, this was the hardest part for the three of us, because this is, of course, the kissing part. I have to pretend I'm kissing Iggy when I like Fang. Iggy has to pretend to kiss me which is going to be awkward since we're going to be awkwardly staring at each other for the next few seconds. And then Fang would be standing in the background, reciting poetry like his best friend wasn't about to "kiss" some random chick.

Yeah, something like that.

* * *

><p>"How was practice?" Dad asked, shifting his camera slightly.<p>

"The usual. We did the balcony scene."

"Ah," he said and nodded. "You know, Max, it's weird that you're going to pretend to kiss the same guy again."

I shrugged. "What can I say? Iggy's more into drama than the rest of us. Though he doesn't look like much of a drama queen."

"Max,"

"Yeah?"

"Is Fang still out of your league?"

I couldn't help but smile at the question. "I'm not sure. Though I could say he's getting less out of my league."

"You do know you have a year left before you guys probably never see each other again, right?"

"Yes. So, what's your point there?"

"I'm sure the secret will soon be out. Unless it's still a secret, that is."

"That will be the day, Dad." I said. "I have more chances of winning the lottery than being with Fang in some sort of serious relationship."

He shrugged. "You'll never know."

* * *

><p><strong>So, yeah. This is more of an introductory chapter. I assure you there will be action, though slow. Sorry for the really weird quality. I must've read one too many trolls (at least they didn't rub on me).<strong>

**Again, be warned, Part 3 will be VERY different from other parts. There will be more, you know, complications.**

**So yeah, I had exams last Monday and Tuesday. Thursday and Friday were our Intramurals (aka Field Day/s) where I suffered by means of a 5-km run (I know, I'm such a wimp), teachers (literally) taught us how to dougie, I realized how much I sucked in chess, and I wore out my arm from too much badminton. It was fun, anyway =D.**

**So, do you mind reviewing and telling me what you think would happen here? Ha. Review!**

**=D**


	22. Elbow Cuts and Ice Cream

**Thank you Paper Aeroplanes, Tri-Sierra-Tops, desperatelyobvious, insanelysmart101, Sierra156, aquamisfit, bluegreypurple, JealousMindsThinkAlike, WhatIsLove, No namer44, SomethingAboutDarkAngels, roylpain, and BookWorm2011.**

**NOTE: Cyrano de Bergerac is about a smart guy (Cyrano) who is in love with Roxane, but Roxane loves Christian, who is handsome compared to Cyrano (because Cyrano has a huge nose), though he lacks in brains. The two guys collaborate to make everyone's ideal romantic hero (aka smart and handsome).**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own MR.**

* * *

><p><em><strong>5 Days Later<strong>_

"Where, where, where is Mr. Griffith?" Mrs. Dabseer asked as the cast once again prepared for the balcony scene. Why were we still practicing the balcony scene? For some reason, Iggy had trouble with all parts, and according to the Drama Club's rumor mill, had trouble with the "kiss".

"He called in sick." Tess said as she carried a box full of costumes to the stage. Then she looked at Fang, who nodded.

"How about Mr. Steffen?" Mrs. Dabseer asked, this time concerning Iggy's understudy. "Surely he could step in for the next few scenes."

"He has training." Someone working on the props replied.

"Then how can we continue practicing if no one can play Christian?"

Silence. Then, amazingly, Fang stepped forward, hands in his pockets. "Um, I can do it."

"Then who's going to be Cyrano?" She asked, adjusting her glasses. "Is your understudy here?"

The understudy stepped forward, slightly raising his hand. Mrs. Dabseer nodded, and then motioned for the other students to get off the stage. Fang took Iggy's original place, which was near the balcony while the understudy went under it.

"Mrs. Dabseer, are we going to do parts six, eight, and nine?" the understudy asked.

Wait a minute. Parts six, eight, and nine, were of course, the balcony scene. In the balcony, there's a part where Christian "kisses" Roxane. Fang stepped in for Iggy. Iggy plays Christian.

Please tell me it's not going to happen. Christian "kisses" Roxane. I'm Roxane. Iggy is Christian, but he's not here. Fang stepped in as Christian. So. I. Have. To. Kiss. Him. My mind cannot process.

I am seriously not prepared for this.

"Mrs. Dabseer, do we really have to do those parts?" I asked, which made everyone else look up. "I mean, the only reasons you chose them were because Iggy wasn't able to master it. And, well, Iggy is absent."

She thought about it for a moment. "I'd rather that we still do the balcony scene, since it is one of the show's highlights. Not all of the actors and understudies are here. And besides, all other props are under modification. We did the balcony first, assuming that Iggy was present." She said, sort of casting a pointed look at Tess and Fang. "So, shall we start?"

* * *

><p>Fang tried to make his way up to the balcony. For the <em>fifth<em> time. Even if Iggy didn't have that much lines, he still had a lot of trouble with the faltering, since he knew all of the stanzas by heart, and Mrs. Dabseer sometimes caught him saying Cyrano's lines instead of the understudy. Fortunately, we never made it to the part where Christian has to dip and "kiss" Roxane. Actually, we never even made it to the part where he starts climbing up the balcony.

Mrs. Dabseer made him start again, and I was starting to think we were never going to get past this scene. But I guess not being able to reach the kissing scene six times in a row is too good to be true.

"Please, please, please can we just get through with this scene?" I heard Mrs. Dabseer say as we got nearer to the part where Cyrano forces Christian up the balcony. Amazingly, he does manage to climb up without any interjections.

"Hey," he mouthed, before saying, "Ah, Roxane!" The understudy went on with his lines as Fang grabbed me by the waist and dipped me. And he got closer. And closer. He only stopped when his face was couple of inches from mine, so it would look like we were kissing. Fang's slightly longer-than-average hair covering us added to the effect, too.

But there was still one really, really, really tiny part of me that wished someone pushed him or we'd fall, just so I'd have an excuse to kiss him. But that's never gonna happen. And I'm sure that would just turn him off, since I'm a pretty bad kisser. Not that I've kissed or been kissed before.

"Careful!" Mrs. Dabseer shouted in warning, but it was too late. Fang had accidentally lost grip on my waist and I fell down and on the balcony floor in a matter of seconds, my elbow taking most of the impact.

"I'm okay," I said, then, "Ow."

Fang knelt beside me. "Your elbow."

Sure enough, a cut about two inches long had appeared on my right elbow. Who knew the prop could do that much damage?

"Are you okay, Maximum?" Mrs. Dabseer asked. I nodded, and Fang helped me up.

"We better get to the clinic." He said as he helped me down the balcony prop, even though it wasn't completely necessary since it was only a cut on the elbow.

"No need," I said, gently shrugging off his hand, which had been on my shoulder.

"I insist." He said.

"Maximum, let the young man accompany you to the clinic." Mrs. Dabseer said before walking away and ordering the students in charge of props to check if the balcony's floor wasn't damaged.

"See? Even Mrs. Dabseer agrees."

I grunted, though deep inside I was already planning out what I was going to say in case any conversation came to order.

"Fine. Have it your way."

* * *

><p>"So, does it still hurt?"<p>

"Fang, it's a _cut_. On the elbow. It's not like I'm bleeding out or anything."

Mrs. Dabseer finished the rehearsals shortly before we left for the clinic, and both of us were heading back to get our stuff. Fang, being all paranoid and out-of-character, kept asking me if I was okay. I mean, yeah, the cut did hurt, but I have a lot of them. I'm pretty sure I'm not going to die with the cut.

"Well, can I do anything to make it up to you?"

"You already took me to the clinic. It's fine."

Yes, I just denied an offer from Fang to have him do everything just so he could feel less guilty of indirectly causing the _cut_ on my elbow.

"You sure?" He asked as we made our way outside. The sky had turned darker, since we did have overtime with the practice, with the trouble with Fang playing Christian, and all.

I turned around to face him. "What did you eat today?"

"Well, now that I think about it, I haven't eaten a full meal, for the past five hours." He replied, much to my shock. Well, not about the part with him answering, since I did ask a question, but about the part where he answered my question _in a full sentence_. A long one, even. What a record.

"So…" I said, though it would be pretty impossible for Fang to actually continue after that stint, that may or may not have took all his energy to say.

"You wanna grab a bite? I know a place." He said, a sort of pleading tone in his voice.

I shrugged. "Whatever makes you feel less guilty."

* * *

><p>Fang, being the weird out-of-character person he was at that time, took me to a diner uptown I remember spending my Saturday mornings at when I was a kid. Actually, he used to hang out there when he was a kid, too, except he went here on Saturday <em>afternoons<em>, which can explain why we never knew each other before.

"You know, I'm feeling kind of nostalgic." I said after the waitress left our table.

"Me too." He said, leaning back and crossing his arms over his chest.

"So, are you feeling less guilty now?" I asked, tapping my fingers on the clean, white table.

"Does it still hurt?"

I raised my eyebrow in a how-dare-you kind of way. "What am I, a wimp? Didn't you see the other faded scars near it?"

The corners of his mouth twitched upward in a small smile, as if he was daring to challenge me. "No. Show me."

I rolled up my shirt sleeve to show Fang my "battle scars" from tripping on the playground when I was a kid to picking fights with random people I hated back in 8th grade to accidents from trying to cook. He slightly raised an eyebrow before leaning back in his seat again.

"How about you?" I asked, as the waitress gave us our order, both extra large hot fudge sundaes. I grabbed the spoon and started mixing the fudge and ice cream.

"What?" He asked, doing the same thing, either because he did that all the time, or because he was curious to what it'd taste like.

"Any battle scars? Or do you play it safe?"

He gave a small smile before rolling up his sleeve and showing me his scars, which were fewer, but longer or wider. "That's just part one." He said as he rolled back his sleeve and started eating his sundae. Was it just me, or was he inviting/challenging me to look at his other scars? I ignored the comment and dug in my own sundae.

We ate for several minutes in silence, until he put down his spoon and wiped his mouth with a tissue. "Wanna know something?"

I put down my own spoon and wiped my own mouth in response. "Sure."

"Remember back in freshman year, when I told you about some fight I had with my parents?"

I nodded. He actually remembered that?

"Well, my dad and Tess' dad were friends back in college."

"Go on…"

"Well, there was this thing one time…" He started, stumbling on the words in an awkward way, like he wasn't really sure that describing a particular scene was such a good idea. I've seen a couple of those: there was one summer that my cousin tried and failed at trying to narrate the plotline of a certain porn movie to his friend (I was hiding that time). But assuming Fang wasn't like my cousin, well, I'm sure he's not trying to narrate porn. While I was eating.

I raised my hand so that the palm faced him. "Spare me the details. I'm not sure it's worth talking about in a public crowd."

He nodded, glad to be spared the awkwardness that might have ensued. Then he looked down at his sundae, like he just wanted to continue eating instead. "Turns out Tess and I are siblings. Well, half-siblings, anyway."

Before I could stop myself, I said, "Weird; you guys barely look alike."

He smiled. A full smile, except there was no teeth. "I know. It was pretty hard to believe when my parents first told me. I guess that's where the fights came from."

"But now you're cool with it?"

"Yeah. Actually, I've been hanging out with Tess more this school year, so I could get to know my sister, or half-sister, better."

I kept a calm, poker face all through out the conversation, but deep inside, I was sighing in relief. I hate to say this, but Angel was right. They weren't dating, since that might as well be considered incest for them.

"Fang…"

"Yeah?" He asked.

I shoved a spoonful of half-melted ice cream down my throat and smiled. "Last one to finish is a sore loser."

He gave a half-smile, before jamming his spoon into the bowl and saying, "Game."

* * *

><p><em><strong>Saturday Night<strong>_

For some unpredictable reason, it was raining. I could always fall asleep in minutes whenever it rained. But this time was different. I had no valid reason, too. I definitely wasn't nervous about the play, and neither was I constantly reminiscing the Ice Cream Date. So I grabbed my jeans and a hoodie, plus the foldable umbrella on my desk.

I know, taking a stroll in the middle of the night while it's raining is weird. I'm definitely weird like that.

I twirled the handle as I walked past rows of houses, to where I definitely wanted to goat that moment: the clearing. Not that I want to go there because that's where Fang usually hangs out, but because it always had this peaceful aura. And I was definitely craving for some peace. That, and sleep.

In a matter of minutes, I reached the trail, but had to close my umbrella since it kept getting tangled with the branches. As I reached the clearing, I noticed a silhouette of a teenage boy sitting on one of the topmost branches of the tree in the center. It was Fang; I could tell by the Converse he was wearing. I silently made my way to the tree and lightly knocked my fist on its trunk.

"What are you doing here?" He asked in a low voice once he recognized me.

"I couldn't sleep. What are you doing here?"

"I couldn't sleep, either."

I set my umbrella beside the trunk. "Care for some company?"

He shrugged, smiled, and said, "Why not?"

* * *

><p><strong>That was officially the most cliff-hanger-y ending I've ever done in my life so far. IDK if I want to continue it. Should I continue it? In the next chapter, I mean.<strong>

**Anyway, sorry for the too-normal quality of this chapter. On a random note, it's 1 AM here, October 2, as I'm typing this and I'm pretty much running on whatever adrenaline I have in me. That might explain the quality.**

**(Also, it's probably because I spent my Friday night shamelessly watching High School Musical 3 in the midst of typing. And singing along to it.)**

**Anyway, review and let me know what you think! As usual =D.**


	23. In the Middle of the Night

**Im'ma let you finish, but I would first like to say thank you, again, to SomethingAboutDarkAngels, fallinghigher, bluegreypurple, aquamisfit, JealousMindsThinkAlike, desperatelyobvious, Wingz-and-a-Fez, Don't have a username XD, WhatIsLove, Person22, Sierra156, Yesmeen, No namer44, , and Ch Ch Ch Ch Ch Cherry Bomb.**

**Enjoy =D**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own MR.**

* * *

><p>Fang shrugging, smiling, and saying "Why not?" in a very… hot… manner all in one conversation taking a time span of less than five minutes is either good or bad; and definitely weird. But then, who could refuse an offer like that? I made my way up the tree as fast as I could without looking stupid, Fang watching as I got higher and higher, until I got to the thick branch he was sitting on. He smiled, and then slid a bit farther to make space for me. The leaves above, thankfully, gave us enough cover to not get wet.<p>

"So, do you typically spend sleepless nights on tree branches?" I asked jokingly.

He thought about it for a moment, and then playfully shrugged. Yes, _playfully_. In Nudge's dictionary, anything that is described as "playfully" would be classified under flirting. "Sometimes." He replied.

"Why did you go here?" He asked after a minute or two of silence.

"I'm not really sure. I guess I just wanted to think, and, well, this has always been a good place for thinking, as you've already proved. And I never could sleep, even if it was raining."

"Maybe because you think too much."

"Huh?"

"Maybe you just deserve a little time off. Why don't we play the game with the questions?"

"The one where you ask a question, then I answer and ask a question?"

He nodded.

"Sure. You first."

"Why does everyone hate you? From what I know, you're not really the type of girl to hate."

"I give off that vibe on a lot of people. The same way you give off an 'emo boy' vibe on a lot on people." I replied, and paused to think of a question. "Why did you drop me during practice? Not that I'm mad or anything. Just slightly curious."

He shrugged. "Nerves, I guess? I mean, it's not like I get really, really close to someone of the opposite gender like that, especially while I'm dipping the said person. Why are you not like your friends?"

"They take more on their moms. Most of my genes are from my father. Why were you willing to step up for Christian last time?"

"You never want to see the wrath of drama teachers. There was one time when I was in this play with Iggy back in middle school, and the female lead wasn't there when it was only three or four days before the show. The teacher threw a really huge fit, one, I shall mention, that we had to clean up for hours. How come you sometimes zone out whenever the seven of us hang out during lunch?"

"I think a lot during lunch. Except that I don't know exactly what I'm thinking of. What's with the black wardrobe?"

He shrugged again. "I just feel more comfortable when I wear black. You have to admit, it matches my skin better than white does."

For a brief second, I glanced down at his olive skin that shone under the moonlight, and compared it to my tan skin. "What do you do when you get home?" He asked.

"Nothing. That, or homework. You?"

"Anything I get my mind into. Like leave in the middle of the night and climb up a tree to do some deep thinking. What are you planning this summer?"

"Nothing really. Maybe just hang around at home, go out once in a while, the usual thing. What are you thinking deeply about?"

"A lot. School, friends, family, if I want to get a summer job. Pretty ordinary stuff. Are you thinking about anything?"

Anything? More like _someone_. Him in particular. What happened the past couple of years, if you want to be specific. How two people who barely knew each other ended up sitting beside each other on a tree, asking the other questions. "Same thing you think of. The play in particular."

"What about the play?"

"I'm not a drama fanatic. I mean, you aren't one either, but you do it because Iggy's your best friend. And I do it because..." I shook my head, like I was trying to not blurt out that I did acting for Fang. "I don't know; I just did it. Chances are, I'm going to mess up. Again."

He nodded, and we sort of dropped the game and watched the moon. It looked larger than it was here than when I saw it from my bedroom window, like I could just reach out my hand and I'd be touching it. But that would never happen. Just like Fang. I could hang out with him all I want, but it would be impossible for something between us to happen.

"Damn, it's almost summer but it's still getting pretty cold." I muttered, more to myself.

I'm really clueless. I mean, I _was_ wearing a jacket, and I _was_ still feeling cold. But insisting that you don't need a guy's arm around you to keep you warm, jacket or no jacket, a gentleman will make always make sure he will have the upper hand in the battle.

Take Fang, for example.

"Yeah, global warming sucks." He said, edging a bit closer and wrapping his arm around me.

I'm not going to complain here. His arm did give me the benefit of being warmer. And quite near, so that if I tilted my head it would land perfectly on his shoulder. But it was, in a way, weird. Like why-the-heck-is-this-happening-I-don't-deserve-this weird. And if Nudge was here, she would consider that as a typical guy move, plus the global warming remark as an awkward attempt at conversation.

"No, it's okay." I said, trying to lightly brush of his hand, which had the amazing ability to stay in place without putting too much pressure on my arm.

"I insist." He said, as if he was also trying to say, _end of discussion_. "So, what's your question?"

"My question?"

"You forgot to ask one."

"Oh," I said, putting down my hand. "Why did you kiss me in here last year before you left?" I suddenly blurted out. But it was too late to take back. The damage was done. Or at least I thought it was.

He ran a hand through his shaggy black hair, which had telltale signs he just got up and left, like I did. "I don't really know why, either. But…" He paused, like he didn't want to continue, but went on anyway. "But it wasn't like the one in Aladdin. It didn't felt like I did it on impulse."

"Oh," I said, and we went back to our moon-watching. Only to make it more complicated.

"Max," He started reluctantly.

"Yeah?"

Then he turned his head and kissed me.

It's hard kissing while sitting on a tree branch without leaning against the trunk. There are huge chances that you'll fall. And even larger chances that one will stop because of the fear of falling. No, the kiss wasn't like those you see in movies, with the couple practically chewing each other's face off. I'm pretty sure the kiss lasted for ten seconds. Or less. But that still didn't let me forget the fact that _Fang _was kissing _me_. And that I was kissing him back. And that his arm was still around me.

And that I had a feeling that things were just going to get more complicated.

Fang felt just as weirded out as I was after kissing. He instinctively punched the branch we were sitting on, making it move for a few seconds.

"Oh God, I'm sorry."

"It's okay." I said, looking down and biting my lip. _It's okay?_ Even my brother could do better. But _don't be_ sounded wrong, like I was being a flirt, or cheating on my boyfriend. If I had one.

He looked at his watch. The digital display announced that it was almost two in the morning.

"I guess we should go, it's getting pretty late." He said, slowly removing his arm, like he didn't want to be caught. As if I couldn't tell. "I could use some sleep."

I stretched my arms in front of me and adjusted my hoodie. "Yeah, we probably should."

I slowly made my way down the tree. Even after almost two hours of talking, and less than ten seconds of kissing, the rain was still pouring hard. We quickly grabbed our umbrellas and made our way through the trail, opening them once we were back in the park, which in a way was my metaphorical representation of reality; the "magic" was left at the clearing.

We walked in silence. Fang keeping it because he was probably ashamed (even if I couldn't find good reason for that yet), and me holding it back because of the awkwardness. If that made any sense. When we arrive at the main road, which branched into a fork, Fang faced me, as if to give a final speech. His neighborhood was at the right part of the road, while mine was at the left.

"I'm really sorry-" He started.

"It's cool." I said, inching a millimeter away from him. "I know you didn't mean to do it on purpose. It was just on impulse, right?"

Or was it? He nodded, though, and that nod was the only thing keeping me sane. Knowing that someone kissed you but didn't mean to was easier to understand than being kissed for unknown reasons without ever actually knowing it your whole life.

He once again ran a hand through his hair. "I guess we better go. Goodnight."

I smiled a little, giving him a pat on a shoulder that was meant to be reassuring, but was probably translated as scary. "Goodnight."

I watched him walk away, before turning around and making my own way home.

If this was a dream, then I'd want to wake up. Because, this was _TOO_ good to be true.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Monday, Lunch<strong>_

"What's wrong with sitting with Fang?" Nudge asked, trying to drag me by the elbow. The four of us were standing in the cafeteria, trays in hand. She insisted that we sit with Fang, Iggy, and Tess, who were oblivious as they talked across the room, Fang talking the least. I was still _really_ confused about the kiss, which no one else knew about, so I refused. Which the three of them refused to accept.

"I just don't really feel like hyperventilating today." I said, trying to make my way to a vacant table, but Ella pulled me back.

"But isn't he worth hyperventilating for?" Ella asked, slightly shaking me by the shoulders, which caused the items on my tray to almost fall.

"Are you okay, Max?" Angel asked. "Did anything bad happen to you over the weekend?"

_If you consider the guy you like kissing you practically on impulse bad, then _YES. "Nothing." I said, shaking my head, mostly because I wanted to get any thoughts related to that kiss out of my mind.

"Then let's go," she said, and the three of them pushed and pulled me until we reached the table.

"Oh, hey, Max." Iggy said, waving his fork and showering the table with spaghetti sauce.

We took our usual places, which meant that I had to sit next to Fang. But it was pretty common, so the five of them continued talking, while the two of us ate lunch quietly.

"Fang, you okay?" Iggy asked, his arm frozen as he held a forkful of spaghetti _en route_ to his mouth. "You look sort of weirded out."

Tess shrugged. "He's still probably worried about what happened a couple of days ago. No offense, Max, but it was a _cut_. On the elbow. And he apologized all afternoon; he probably passed his daily word limit."

Fang has a daily word limit? Fascinating. Now if we could get back to the matter at hand, which might've included me wanting to mentally scream at her that it wasn't about a tiny elbow cut that made him more silent, if such thing was possible. The others' conversations continued, instead, and the two of us remained quiet until the end of lunch. I went to my locker and grabbed my phone. _We should talk._ I typed out, and sent it to Fang. A minute later, my phone lit up.

_Sure. Let's go to the diner again_.

I put my phone back, and made my way to my next class. If all this happened during my freshman year, I would've already been mentally writing down some speech I'd want to give to him.

The two years I've spent was long enough to know that I would still be speechless when I saw him. And this time, it probably wouldn't be because of what he looked like, or what he was going to say.

It would be either because of what happened, or what was going to happen.

* * *

><p><strong>My weird writing and I are back, dears =D.<strong>

**Anyway, since I almost always put excuses on the end A/Ns, my friend suggested I do a list: Teachers' Day preps, sleep deprived-ness, double book report, reading of too much YA's at the same time (i.e. **_**The Heroes of Olympus: The Son of Neptune**_**. Damn you, cliff hanger ending).**

**Review and ask questions! Because I like replying to questions. =D**


	24. Talk

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own MR.**

* * *

><p><em><strong>Fang<strong>_

There was no sign of Max anywhere in the school when the final bell rang.

It was rush hour for all students, each trying to make their way through the crowd in desperation to reach their lockers and finally go to whatever after school activity they had in mind. But "Moses", or as Iggy dubbed Max when he saw her walk through the crowd which had split in half while she glared daggers at the others during his first day at school, was nowhere to be seen. It wasn't that hard to spot a large gap in the crowd after all.

"Yo, Fang, where're you going?" Iggy, who seemed to appear out of nowhere, asked as I slammed my locker door shut. He'd been like that for the past week or two, like he was getting jumpy or something.

"Nowhere." I shrugged. No one knew about the post-practice ice cream, the "midnight kiss", and the upcoming talk, of course. Or at least in my side, no one did. Though Max was definitely not the type to just go blabbering about anything to her friends, seeing as how fast gossip spreads in this school.

"You look jumpy." He said as we walked out of the building. "Anything up?"

I shook my head. Yes, a lot of things were up, and the weirdest ones always involved Max. First, it was the way I acted like an obnoxious mom after the incident, where she received a _cut_. And then the kiss. It seemed like the more time I spent with her, the crazier I got in all aspects.

"Nothing going on with your parents again?" Iggy asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Nothing." I said. I also never mentioned to anyone how Max helped me out during freshman year. Actually, no one heard much about Max from me.

"I have to go. See you." He said, and turned to walk to the theater, where he had a little catching up to do after his absence. Max's and my understudy were there, probably because Mrs. Dabseer didn't want to have anything to do with set damage after what happened. It seemed that Max had a pretty strong elbow, since it caused a hole the size of a foot on the balcony floor.

I checked the time on my phone. Max was probably already at the diner. I could almost imagine her absentmindedly tapping her fingers on the smooth, white tables, or maybe drawing on the table's surface with her pinky. Me thinking about what Max was doing right now? Just more proof that I _was _getting crazier.

It was definitely time to talk.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Max<strong>_

I was running late. _Really_ late. And no, it was not because of detention, or a distraction from Nudge, or practice, or even the late afternoon traffic. Well, the traffic had a part in it, but that's not the point.

I was late because I _wanted_ to be late.

Even if I did suggest that we do this talk that might determine our relationship with each other, it's not like I'm that excited about it. As soon as the last bell rang, I took my time putting all my stuff back in my bag, arranging everything by height from my notes folder to my tiny pencil sharpener. Ms. Rean, my teacher for that period, even told me to hurry up. Then I _slowly_ made my way to my locker and decided to arrange everything by height, too. By the time I finished, practically half the school crowd left, probably including Fang, though I ducked behind the occasional plant to be sure he didn't spot me just in case. Thankfully, no one, not even my friends who had after-school club meetings, questioned my strange behavior.

"Max!" Someone called out as I exited the main building. It was Tess, who was jogging up frantically, like she was going to tell me something important. Please don't let it have to do anything with Fang being involved with some kind of accident.

"Anything wrong?"

She shook her head. "Mrs. Dabseer was looking for you." She said in between deep breaths.

"I thought my understudy was here?"

Tess shook her head again. "She just needs your script, the one that Mrs. Dabseer edited."

"Oh." I opened my bag and took out the aforementioned script. "Here." I said as I handed it to her. She looked like she was about to say something, but then slightly shook her head and ran back in the direction she came from. I wish it took longer, just to delay my paranoia a little.

But Fang was probably at the diner already. Being totally late, like an hour late, would definitely annoy him. And annoying a person before having a serious talk never helps. Plus, I was going to have to do this sooner or later.

I choose sooner.

* * *

><p>Fang wasn't that hard to spot; I'd compare him to an elephant in a rock concert, as weird as that may sound. His olive skin, dark hair, and black ensemble clashed against the cream-colored booth and walls. I guess I was as easy to spot as he was, because as soon as I entered, he stopped tapping his fingers and started to relax, even though he didn't actually look up and see me. Please don't be mad. Or impatient. Or both.<p>

"Hey," I said as I reluctantly slid in the seat across him.

He looked up, his eyes boring into mine and not on my wristwatch or the wall clock by the counter. "Hey."

"Sorry I'm late. Traffic."

"You want something to eat?"

"Um, I'm not really that hungry. Do you want to eat anything?"

He shook his head. Cue in the awkward silence that seems to happen to me every time.

"Do you want to get this over with?"

"Yes."

"Do you want to start first?"

He thought about it for a minute or two before shaking his head and saying, "I'd rather not."

"I will. But then I'd rather not talk here. It just feels, well, too public."

"You want to take a walk?"

I stood up in response, grabbing my bag and walking out of the diner as fast as I could. Fang followed closely.

"Where to?" I asked as he stepped beside me.

"The nearby park. I think it's not that crowded during this time."

Taking a walk while having a very important conversation is not always a good sign. Doing so at a park is worse, since I've seen so much breakup scenes taking place at parks from the chick flicks Nudge made me watch once. Not that we're together. But it's definitely going to ruin the chances of "Fax".

We sat at on a bench at one of the more abandoned spots and let the first couple of minutes pass in silence.

"I'm confused, with you. Or when I'm with you. Just really, really, confused." I said without trying to maintain eye contact. Both of us were staring straight ahead at other people.

"I'm just as confused as you are." He confessed. "Not in a way that I don't know you, but in a way that I don't know who you are to me. I don't know if you're just one of the people I know, or if you're a really cool friend, or if…"

I wondered what he was going to say. If I'm a complete stranger? If I'm something more that a friend/best friend? If I'm a person who completely barged into his life unexpectedly?

"But I like you. I definitely like you." He said.

I smiled a little. "Thanks for liking me."

"You sound like I'm one of your suitors." He said jokingly. I laughed, and lightly punched him on the arm.

"I… I have a feeling I like you more." He said quietly.

"Why would you?" I asked, in the same low tone. I was actually expecting him to say some cheesy line from a movie, in one of those particular scenes where the male playboy lead says, "You're not like those other girls." I was also expecting him to list reasons like, "you're fun to be with", "you're still a good person", or "you can kick ass".

Fortunately and unfortunately, Fang kissing me was not on my list of expectations.

Imagine being kissed by the guy you like who doesn't know if he really like-likes you or not. On a tree. Then imagine being kissed by that same guy, who still hasn't made a clear decision, on a park bench where you were sitting beside each other moments ago. Imagine being kissed by him for more than ten seconds, but less than fifteen seconds.

"Max?" He asked after we stopped kissing and resumed back to our positions before.

"Yeah?"

"I'm sorry."

"For what?"

Great, Max. You blew it again. Re: Talk to self. Remind self to say "Don't be" when cute guy you like apologizes for suddenly kissing you with no end-games involved.

"For… Kissing you like that." He said, unfazed by my very "witty" replies so far. "I mean, I don't want to confuse you more."

I was most definitely confused. "A cute guy just leading you on" is on my list of people who deserve at least two or three roundhouse kicks from me every week. In fact, it's number three on my list next to "people who experiment with humans" and "people who have to dye their hair a different color just to attract people".

"Do you still want to talk?" He asked. "If you want, I can, well, leave."

I suddenly realized he was referring how silent I've been, not just after the kiss, but before it. Everyone knows I never come unarmed. But heck, this was Fang. Everything gets stranger and weirder with him around.

"No, it's cool."

"Are you going to ask me?"

"What would I ask you? Why you kissed me the past couple of times?"

"Yes."

"Would I want to hear it?"

"You might."

I lifted my legs up so that I hugged my knees. "We definitely have a lot to talk about."

* * *

><p><em><strong>Friday: Opening Night of the Play<strong>_

Nothing about "Cyrano de Bergerac" was like "Aladdin". Everyone was dressed in seventeenth-century clothes, me included, and the fact that it was a dress alone made me want to barf. Then I saw Iggy and Fang in their own costumes. It almost made me laugh, but then I remembered the last time Fang and I talked.

Both of us agreed that we would keep it a secret. No, we weren't in any sort of relationship that required the words "boy", "girl", and "friend", nor did it include anything related to me confessing my "undying love" for him. The talk was a bit too awkward, anyway. We just… talked.

I didn't want to think about it. Not now, when I'm doing another school production in front of hundreds of people with the guy who didn't know if he actually liked me or not, and his best friend. Plus a handful of students.

"Hey," I said as Tess, who was the play's assistant director, approached me. "How many minutes are we on?"

She checked her watch. "Almost ten. I better call on the others. Good luck."

I smiled, and then focused half of my attention back to Fang, who was talking to Iggy. Fang didn't seem affected by our last conversation. But then, so was I. It hade been more than a week since that. Surely, we'd have time to move on a little.

"And I thought you couldn't pull _that_ off." Iggy said as I went in their direction. We exchanged high fives, and I nodded at Fang, who nodded back in reply.

"I never said I couldn't. I just said I didn't want to."

"Iggy!" Tess called out. "Come on. You're in the first scene."

He gave something that resembled a wink in my direction before walking off. So it was just Fang and me.

"Fang?"

"Yeah?" he looked up, but still shy and ashamed to look me in the eye. But then, I never did remember him looking me in the eye long enough for me to take it seriously.

"Good luck."

He smiled a little, though a normal person would never notice and think he was still making a straight face. "Thanks."

* * *

><p><em><strong>2 Weeks Before Summer<strong>_

Needless to say, _Cyrano de Bergerac_ ended successfully.

Needless to say, the mystery that is my relationship status with Fang did not. In fact, it hasn't even ended yet.

I half-avoided Fang after the play, except for the occasional discussions with the rest of the gang during lunch. We were really, really, REALLY, weirded out. Both of us. There was the kiss. The other kiss. Then the talk. The worst part was, he didn't even know if he liked me on a level that made him really want to kiss me. Either he liked me, or he was leading me on, or it was a stupid impulse thing he wouldn't ever want to do again.

I'm afraid of all three. Actually, I'm afraid of the question more than the answer. Because I don't want to know if it has an actual answer. Heck, I'm just really afraid in general.

Oddly enough, the drama club was once again invited to an end-of-school party hosted by the club president. Everyone, as in me, Fang, Iggy, the rest of the cast, crew, members, and maybe several other students. On the very last day of school, the last day Fang and I are going to have clear communication before we barely acknowledge each other's existence again for the next couple of months.

Who knows? Maybe something good will happen. Maybe I'll get some answers. Maybe we'll both get answers.

* * *

><p><strong>Dear readers,<strong>

**I apologize for:**

**A) Disappearing for almost a month.**

**B) Not saying anything about why I disappeared ahead of time.**

**C) Posting a chapter with odd quality that is a filler and will keep you hanging and waiting for another week for something to actually happen.**

**D) All of the above.**

**You may blame:**

**A) Dance practice, which kept me busy during the week where I was supposed to actually upload the chapter.**

**B) Exams, and more dance practice the week before, which did not give me enough time to upload it. Again. And maybe also because I'm sure I failed half of them and my H-E-A-Ps (high-expectations Asian parents) will be totally mad at me.**

**C) Vienna's "last" chapter, which I read before tweaking the chapter a bit.**

**D) All of the above.**

**You can get mad at me via the reviews. And while you're at it, please tell me what you think!**

**-americanbread =D**


	25. A Party

**NOTE: I'm pretty sure you guys are wondering, "Why the heck is she putting up five chapters for the WHOLE JUNIOR YEAR?" The reason I did this is because the rest of Part 3 WILL TAKE PLACE DURING THE SUMMER, so I can at least make better scenes than what I originally intended the last time.**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own MR.**

* * *

><p>We all know I'm not a party person.<p>

As badass as I am, I've never gotten seriously drunk, danced on any tabletops, projectile vomited on someone I liked or hated, drove drunk people home whenever I remained sober, and drunk texted someone. But I have been to parties, and I have started fights with people (which were easy to defeat because they were drunk), watched drunk AND sober people dance on tabletops, and received drunk texts (most of them from Nudge).

All in all, I wasn't really here to party.

"Hey, Max!" Iggy called out. He was in the living room, one of the spectators who watched the popular kids and geeks sitting in a circle, playing Spin the Bottle. Nudge, Angel, Ella, and I separated after arriving, with me searching for Fang for some unknown reason.

"Hey, Ig" I said approaching him. He had an amused look on his face as the bottle spun and landed on a popular guy wearing a Spongebob necktie. "Where are Fang and Tess?"

He shrugged. "We split up once we got here." He said. "You look, um, normal."

I looked down at the shirt and jeans I was wearing. He was basically wearing the same ensemble. "Thanks. You look... normal, too."

"Wanna join, Max?" Some guy from my homeroom asked me. I resisted the urge to kick or knee him in the face and instead turned back to face Iggy. "I'm gonna, um, go get something... to drink."

He nodded. "Sure. I'll go look for Fang and Tess." He said, and we both headed in the opposite direction, him accidentally bumping into me for a split second. I made my way to the kitchen, glancing at the occasional hallway just in case Fang was there. No such luck so far.

The kitchen, thankfully, was a lot less crowded. The fridge was left open, and I grabbed a coke and took a few gulps. I thought of sending him a text, but that would be too awkward. I finished the rest of the soda, and checked my phone. There was one message. And it was from an unknown number.

_Look behind you._

"Miss me?" A familiar voice asked. There was only one conceited person I knew who had a catch-phrase like that. And he graduated high school two years ago.

"What are you doing here?" I asked through gritted teeth as I turned around to face Dylan. He had a huge grin on his face, and he was already acting like he was drunk even if you could barely smell the alcohol on his breath.

Great.

"Crashing the party, of course." He said, the grin on his face. "You must be thirsty. Want anything to drink?"

I eyed the recently emptied coke can, which had been automatically crushed while I was talking with Dylan. Then I looked up at him, with his eyebrow raised, like he was questioning that I was willing to die of thirst if he was the one giving out the water.

"Fine." I said, mostly to just get him off my tail. "Just one."

* * *

><p><em><strong>Fang<strong>_

Max was nowhere to be found. Or in my case, she was.

After arriving and splitting up with Iggy and Tess, I wandered around the hallways just in case Max came earlier and was just hanging around, only to have some drunk guy shove a guitar at my face and command me to play all known Justin Bieber songs. He even had one of his more drunken friends hold me down until I finished all of them.

Not exactly my way of spending a party on a Friday night.

"I'm pretty sure this is all of them," I mumbled, setting down the guitar and trying to push the more drunken guy away.

"You forgot _Mistletoe_!" he cried, pushing me back down, making my elbow hit the guitar. Ow.

What? There was a new Justin Bieber song? "Well, I don't know the chords."

"Play it!"

"I don't even know what it sounds like!"

"Fang, there you are!" a familiar voice, and no, it was not Max, called out. I looked up just in time for Iggy to pick up the drunken guy who pushed me back, which was not an easy feat. He kept pulling Iggy's shirt while crying about some purple frilly dress.

"Thanks," I said, getting up and giving Iggy a high-five. "Where'd you go?"

"Just wandered around. I saw Max a while ago."

"How about Tess?"

"I saw you first. Wanna get something to drink?"

"Yeah, sure."

* * *

><p>When you go to a party and find someone who's usually badass dancing on a kitchen counter even when there's only two people watching, it's either really good, or really, really, really bad.<p>

"This needs parental guidance, kids." He said, blocking the view with his hand and using the other to block mine.

Max dancing on the tabletop was wrong on so many levels. Not that she was wearing anything revealing or tabletop and countertop dancing worthy, but it was really wrong. Because I'm pretty sure Max is too stubborn to do any form of questionable dancing, even when drunk.

"I can see she wants to impress Ken." Iggy said, elbowing me. I saw an amazingly sober Dylan, arms crossed over his chest and a mischievous grin on his face, watching Max's attempts at sexy dancing. So there _was_ an actual reason she didn't like dancing. Dylan caught me looking at him and he just smiled and shrugged.

"You know the guy?" Iggy asked.

"Sort of. We should really get Max down from there before things get worse."

"I'm with you." He said. We went to Max and Dylan, and while Iggy was trying to persuade Max to stop dancing and get down from the counter, my fist and I were getting ready to hit Dylan.

"If she dances like this, then I wonder how she got that part in _Aladdin_." He chuckled.

"How much did you make her drink?"

"It was just one glass." He replied, a satisfied grin on his face. "But I spiked it."

"What the hell?" I shouted, punching him right at the nose. People looked, then shrugged as Dylan hit the floor with a thud. I got up at the counter where Max was dancing.

"Hey!" She slurred happily. "You're cute!"

I'm cute? "Sure, Max. Now get off the counter."

"But I wanna dance!"

What did he put in her drink? Valium or something? "You can dance on the floor."

"It's better?"

"It is. Now let's get down." I jumped of the counter and then grabbed a small stool as a makeshift stair for her to get down easily.

"Is she stoned or something?" Iggy asked as he watched Max flip her hair. "Should I get some water?"

"Yeah, you should. There must be some in the fridge. I hear that the tap here can be dirty sometimes."

He walked to the opened fridge and looked in. "There's none. I'll go and ask around."

"Sure."

"Who's he?" Max asked as Iggy left the kitchen. She was getting creepier by the minute. "Is he related to Nancy Drew?"

"Um, no."

"Oh, how about Strawberry Shortcake?"

"No."

"Let's dance!"

"Max, you should really stop with the dancing thing."

"But it's really, really fun!" She whined. "You should try it!"

"No thank you."

Max still ended up attempting to shake her hips in my direction. "C'mon!"

I looked around, in the hopes that no one found this particularly funny and decided to tape it. Max danced around me in a circle and kept on giggling. Then she pushed me hard, and my back hit against the counter.

"We should sit." She slurred, still in her spiked and cheerful demeanor. Then she pushed my shoulders downward so that I sat on the floor. "Do you feel comfortable?"

"Yes?" This was starting to get seriously creepy. Where was Iggy and what was taking him so long?

"Great!" She grinned and sat on my lap. Oh God.

"Um, Max, I think you should get off me."

She didn't reply and instead looked me in the eye. "You're cute." She whispered. Then she kissed me.

Let me repeat that for you. _She_ kissed _me_. Not the other way around, which how it usually happens. If we weren't in the party and Max wasn't spiked, I'd consider this romantic. I mean, this really sweet -whenever she was sober- girl was practically sitting on my lap kissing me. But she was spiked, and that really didn't make a difference when it came to how we felt about each other. I've seen drunk people kiss random strangers and not mean it.

But I still wish she was kissing me because she wanted to and not because she was spiked. And I wish this would never stop.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Max<strong>_

I do not want to know what happened last night. Never do I want to know.

The first thing I noticed when I woke up was that I was still wearing my Converse. And then I noticed that I was wearing the same jeans and shirt I wore to the party last night, which is never a good sign that I had a fun time. I immediately got up and snatched my phone which sat patiently on my desk.

Nudge picked up on the third ring. "Yeah?" She asked sleepily.

"What happened last night? I'm still wearing the same outfit, you know."

A normal Nudge would suddenly panic and tell me how to wash them properly. But I guess the Nudge I was currently talking to was sleepy and tired, because I could hear a yawn over the phone.

"Last night? Mmm, I think I remember Fang saying something about you dancing in the kitchen."

The kitchen? I mean, it is less crowded than in the other tables, but seriously? Me? Dancing in the kitchen? "Anything else, Nudge?"

"Mmm. Not really. I was dancing and having a really fun time, and then Fang and Iggy came up to me and you were between them. Then they said something about, um, you drinking, I think? But I was having fun, so I just gave them the keys to my car and told them to take you home. They already returned them to me, by the way."

"O-kay, Nudge. Thanks." I said and hung up. I never drink. Maybe during dares, but I don't drink that much, either. But I definitely feel like I'm hung-over or something, plus, I forgot what happened the rest of the night. I mean, I remember arriving with Nudge, Ella, and Angel and splitting up with them. Then I found Iggy, and we split up, too. And then I went to the kitchen to get something to drink, and I was sure that it was a coke. And then, Dylan found me, and he offered me… something to drink.

Damn. What did he do this time? And is it possible that Fang has saved me yet again from doing more destructive things than dancing in the kitchen? And… kissing more than one random stranger?

Oh God. I don't even know who the guy is. I'm positive though, that he was… dark. Dark, as in black. And not black as in the race, or the skin color, but black as in… black. Black the actual color. But I'm sure kissing a shadow in the shape of a guy which was kissing me back is pretty impossible.

Unless… unless the guy was wearing black. A lot of black. Like a black/dark ensemble. And I only know one guy in the party, and in the whole school, that wears black and/or dark ensembles…

I can't believe I kissed Fang.

I started to go back to my desk, but realized that I put it in my pocket after calling Nudge. And as I got my phone out, my fingers found a piece of paper. A piece of paper that had my name on it. And this was staring at me:

_Will you go out with me? -Iggy_

What the hell?

* * *

><p><strong>Anyone wanna play "Why didn't I post last week?" There might even be a prize =D.<strong>

**Anyone here on NaNoWriMo? I would've wanted to join, but you've already witnessed how slow I write and update during November. For example, I also have exams on the last week, so I'll be once again gone the weekend before that. So, how're you guys doing so far?**

**I'll stop rambling for now, and tell you guys to review and tell me what you think. And maybe unleash the fury of caps lock unto me for not updating regularly. Anyway, review =D.**


	26. Date

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own MR.**

* * *

><p>Those six words still kept ringing at the back of my head. The whole time.<p>

I mean, yes, the very tiny 0.00000000000001 percent of my brain that was girly always wanted to be asked that question. The rest did not. And neither knew how to react to the said question, no matter how much the former appreciated it. I mean, what were you actually supposed to do once you said yes? Call each other at 3 AM and get eye bags? Frolic in the park? Hold hands while walking into the sunset? Or worse… have romantic candlelit dinners? Seriously, if they held a class for this, I would still not sign up.

What was I going to tell him anyway?

"This is totally a lose-lose situation." Nudge said as she inspected her newly done nails. The four of us gathered at her house to discuss the note. No other mentions of countertop dancing were heard.

"Elaborate." I said. Angel and Ella looked at me. They both looked like they were going to explain, but then shut their mouths as Nudge started talking.

"If you say yes, you get a summer romance, but then it's not with the guy you like. And the chances that Fang's going to put you in the friend zone will be extremely large. If you say no, you will be free for the whole summer if you don't consider the guilt of breaking a young man's heart, thus making Fang despise you considering that Iggy's his best friend. So you have no summer romance, but you get to make an enemy."

"So what am I supposed to say?"

"Under these circumstances, it's best you avoid him first." Ella said. "But then, he's not the type that's going to keep bugging you until you break down and say yes."

"So the best possible solution is that you can keep hanging out with them, but never bring up the topic."

"And if Iggy does?"

"Do the typical _'I need more time to think.'_" Nudge answered.

Ella did her wide-eyed innocent face and turned to Angel. "And what do the vibes say?"

Angel tapped her temple, blinked, and then proclaimed, "Expect that you're going to see him soon."

"True. Iggy _is_ an all-around guy." Nudge chirped.

"And he _might_ ask you something relating to the very question. Might."

Should I mention once again how she has _never been wrong_ about the vibes?

* * *

><p><em><strong>Fang<strong>_

"Gosh, Iggy, don't be so jumpy." Tess said, eyeing all ten of Iggy's chewed down, almost bleeding finger nails. "You do know it's been less than twenty-four hours, right?"

Iggy mumbled something like "I don't care," and then started chewing down his thumbnail.

Of course he liked Max. He probably liked Max since sophomore year. But he only chose to tell us a couple of months ago. And yes, he begged that we abandon all attempts of matchmaking.

Of course I never told him about Max and I. And how we kissed. Thrice. Even if Iggy cracks jokes all the time, he's a really, really sensitive guy. Based on the extremity of this situation, if he ever found out about that, he would abandon all hope and lock himself in his room and listen to My Chemical Romance or some other "depressing" (his description, not mine) band for the rest of the summer.

"Relax, Ig." I said, and pulled his hand from his mouth. "I'm pretty sure bleeding nails are _not_ the way to a girl's heart."

"And I'm pretty sure she's going to be cool around you, like you always are around her." Tess added. "You _are _pretty likeable."

"But it's _Max_." Iggy reasoned. "She's the most stubborn person I know; she probably refuses relationships until she's mature enough or old enough or something. She's probably too stubborn to even start a relationship."

"Iggy, from her state last night, she's probably not even awake yet." He started to open his mouth to speak, and I added, "even if it's not because she has a hangover."

Tess stood up. "Come on, guys. Let's go out. And maybe expose Iggy to some sunlight."

* * *

><p><em><strong>Max<strong>_

I need coffee a lot of coffee. And maybe a couple of pop tarts.

I was sitting at one of the outdoor tables at a coffee shop uptown. The ice cream place where I once ate extra large hot fudge sundaes with Fang was not far from here. I could even see a large part of the park, the exact one where we kissed while sitting on a bench. What fascinating memories.

I gave a small, barely-there smile at the waitress who served me a large cup of black coffee and a plate of two croissants. I was obviously a terrifying sight to behold, what with my wet, sobered down hair dripping down my back and my eyes a little bloodshot with whatever Dylan put in my drink last night. The rest were just as hideous.

"Max?" I cringed at the familiar voice. I looked up and saw Iggy with a bright grin on his face and a cappuccino in his hands.

"Hey, Ig." I replied, trying to conceal any trace of nervousness. He sat down across the table and took a sip from his cup.

"The White Knight at your service." He said, his voice cool and calm. "I see you're still trying to cure your hangover."

"It was a bad night." I knew that Iggy knew about the countertop dancing fiasco, but did he know about the kiss? Did he even see it?

Obviously not. Duh. If he did, he probably wouldn't have given me that note.

"You here alone?" I asked, trying to make sure that my voice was in a nice, cool I'm-not-implying-that-I-need-to-talk-to-you-alone manner.

"Nope." He replied, and motioned his head to the inside of the coffee shop. "Tess and Fang are still placing their orders."

"Oh,"

"Um, Max... about the note..."

I gulped. "Yeah?"

"Are you... well... do you want to go out sometime? I mean, if you're not comfortable with the two of us alone, we can always get Tess and Fang to be with us. I'm sure they're fine with it."

"Um..."

Thankfully, my almost-reply was interrupted by Fang and Tess who arrived and took the remaining seats, which meant that Fang was beside me.

"Whoa, Max," Tess said once she had a good look at me. "And I thought Nudge looked worse."

"She still does, actually." I said, taking a bit of my croissant. "At least I already showered."

Iggy and Tess smiled at the comment. Fang, meanwhile, just took a sip of his coffee.

"You know Max, we're going to Iggy's tonight to have a movie marathon and maybe sleep over there. Do you want to join?"

I looked at Iggy while taking another bite of my croissant. His eyes were totally pleading me to go with them.

"Why not?" I shrugged. "Not like I have a lot of things to do this summer."

* * *

><p>I have been to Iggy's a couple of times. And even if he didn't send that note, I'd still be joining them. Not because Fang was there, too (although that does contribute), but because Iggy has a pretty impressive collection. In a way, he's more well-stocked than the local Blockbuster.<p>

"Do we get to pick randomly again?" Tess asked, eyeing the fishbowl full of scrap paper which was on his desk. I was pretty familiar with their "Random-sampling" system, where they just picked from the fishbowl instead of having to choose from the collection.

Iggy smiled before picking up the fishbowl and shoving it in my direction. I mixed the contents a bit before picking out a tiny piece of paper.

"Ah, _The Fast Five_." Tess said from behind me. "Not a bad choice. How about you, Ig?"

Iggy was trying hard not to laugh and drop the bowl. He took a deep breath and handed Tess the paper in his hands.

"No way!" Tess exclaimed, her eyes wide. "You told me you threw out this one."

He grinned sheepishly in reply. In Tess' hand was a worn out, too-much-rolled paper that had the words _High School Musical_ written on it in what I presumed was twelve-year-old Iggy's handwriting.

"Let's hope this one's better." Tess said as she put her hand in the jar. Laughter erupted as she read the words _Mean Girls_ out loud. "We are so having a quote-a-thon."

"Fang?" Iggy asked, turning to the only other person who hadn't been talking much since our arrival, besides me.

Fang blinked at the bowl for a second before snatching it out of his hands and placing it back on the desk. "Let's not make this weirder than it already is."

The rest of us agreed. Tess and I headed to the media room to set up (which is pretty much like their living room, except they don't watch actual TV there) while Iggy got the DVD's and Fang prepared all the popcorn that we needed.

"I still don't get why his parents had to get this room when they have another perfectly functioning television and couch downstairs."

"Iggy hasn't told you that story yet?" Tess asked, a mischievous grin on her face.

"Do I want to know?"

"You'd rather not." Fang said as he entered the room with two large bowls of popcorn and setting them down on the coffee table.

Iggy followed, with the chosen DVDs and a grin on his face. "Let the marathon start."

* * *

><p>"I still think Dom's a better driver." Iggy stated.<p>

"No way. Brian is." Fang said.

"Meg is." Tess argued.

"I'm pretty sure she can't even do a four-wheel drift." Iggy replied.

"I'm pretty sure _you_ don't even know how to do a four-wheel drift."

"And _you_ know how?"

"Place it into rear-wheel-drive with a manual transmission, enter the corner, pull the handbrake with the clutch depressed, then release the clutch and floor the accelerator, and counter-steer."

"I give up."

* * *

><p>"God, Zac Efron looks like a Disney kid there." Tess said, cringing at his Justin-Bieber-like hair and horrible taste for tracksuits.<p>

"Maybe because he was?" I said.

"Plus, his voice is really high there."

"I'm pretty sure that's not what he sounds like when he sings." Iggy said as he nonchalantly munched on popcorn.

Three pairs of eyes, including mine, instantly turned to Iggy.

"What?"

* * *

><p>"She asked me how to spell 'orange'." All four of us said as Damien said the same words at the same time.<p>

"This totally goes well with Harry Potter." Iggy said as he grabbed more popcorn.

"I don't think I can take any more of this movie's greatness." Tess said.

"Me too." Fang and I said at the same time.

"Me three." Iggy chimed in, ignoring the little coincidence that just happened.

"Anyone want to popcorn toss?"

* * *

><p>"Aw, c'mon, Max. You're supposed to aim at my mouth, not my nostrils." Iggy laughed.<p>

Due to sudden extreme boredom getting in the way, all of us decided to find out who could catch popcorn the best, even if we were in the middle of the film. By the time it was the Prom scene, Fang proved that he was indeed the "Popcorn Toss King". Iggy went next, and I kept on missing. Or rather, he kept on missing and didn't like to admit it. Maybe a little bit of both. Either way, it was funny seeing popcorn trying to shoot in his nostrils.

"I give up," I said, throwing the last piece of popcorn, making it land perfectly on Iggy's tongue. "Please pass those huge s'mores."

"Mmmm," Tess said as she took a bite. "I would totally kill for some chocolate milk now."

Iggy suddenly smiled at Fang, who (slightly) smiled at Tess, who smiled at me.

"Are you guys thinking what I'm thinking?"

The four of us silently tiptoed down the stairs with a mini flashlight in hand. The rest of the Griffith family was sound asleep, and I'm sure they're not in the mood to be woken up right now. As soon as we reached the kitchen, Iggy ran for the lights, Fang got some glasses, Tess got a huge carton of chocolate milk out of the fridge, and I took some bendy straws from the cupboard.

"I confess, Iggy, that this was why I was friends with you in the first place." Fang said as he watched him pour the contents into his glass.

"Aw, shut up. You already told me that."

"Hey, the two of you stop talking and start drinking before his parents catch us."

* * *

><p>"I can't believe you still have a lot of these." Tess said as she licked her chocolate-milk-covered lips and went to get her third glass. "I'm going to feel really terrible when I wake up in the morning."<p>

"Me too." I said, resisting the urge to burp loudly and waking up the whole neighborhood in the process.

"Guys, do you know it's one in the morning?" Fang asked, leaning on the counter, eyes slightly more alert from all the chocolaty goodness.

I looked at the digital clock on the kitchen wall. Fang was right. "We should go to sleep before we get into more trouble. Plus, this is already empty." I said, lifting the carton of chocolate milk that was now filled with air.

We cleaned up before going back upstairs. They've been probably doing this for a couple of years, because the kitchen looked untouched after we finished. Save for one missing carton in the fridge and one empty carton in the trash, it didn't look like a bunch of teenagers snuck in at midnight and got drunk over chocolate milk. The boys were going to sleep in Iggy's room, while Tess and I were at the guest room.

"I'm totally going to get a hangover." Tess groaned as she got in the bed.

"Me too. I apologize in advance if I ever vomit on you."

"Great." A moment of silence. "Um, Max?"

"Yeah?"

"You still remember that Iggy's asking you out, right?"

"Yeah."

"So… are you going to say yes?"

Of course. I could never avoid that question. But why would I say yes? And most importantly, why would I say no? Iggy's cute, has a knack for explosives just like my brother, got complimented by my mom for his awesome cooking skills, and he's _nice_. The kind of nice that no matter what reason, you wouldn't hate him.

"I think I am." I answered. And probably lied.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Fang<strong>_

"Do you think Max really likes me?"

"Iggy, how many times have you ever asked me that question? Oh, wait, let me guess… a trillion." I said. "Are you going to let me sleep?"

"Gee sorry, I didn't know you were _that_ sensitive."

"You're just really paranoid Iggy. Now go to sleep."

"I don't know. Sometimes when we talk she seems a little off. Like she's really paying attention to me and actually has an idea on what I'm talking about, but there's this tiny part in her mind that's always distracted."

"And what's wrong with that? Everyone has that kind of part in them."

"But when she's distracted, it looks entirely the opposite. Like when we're talking, she's answering all my questions, but then she looks like she'd rather have another person asking them and she'll be imagining the conversation in her brain while I go on and on."

"You leveled up with your paranoia."

"Do you think we're okay together?"

"Iggy, you are getting weirder by the minute, but for your sake, yes, you two look okay together." I lied. It was hard imagining the two of them together: Iggy, the fun all-around guy and actor with Max, the bad-ass loner. Opposites do attract sometimes, but they weren't exactly opposites.

"Do you think she'd kiss me?"

If she was intoxicated or if both of you were drunk, then yes, she'd kiss you. Other than that, you'll have to step up. "Yeah."

"'Kay. Goodnight."

* * *

><p><strong>I know, I know, I skipped another week. I swear this chapter took long to plan out. So go ahead and abuse your Caps LockShift keys.**

**Anyway, I'd like to greet everyone from America a Happy Thanksgiving, and probably an "I hope you guys have a good time putting out those Christmas decors." (Since there's no Thanksgiving here, every possible Christmas ornament has been put up since SEPTEMBER.)**

**On another note, I'll be really slow in updating this December, with more exams and Christmas shopping and going to places where there is no such thing as Wi-Fi. January-March might also be a little hectic, since they're the last three months of the school-year. So expect that you'll be using the Caps Lock/Shift keys a lot.**

**(And yes, I am aware that this chapter looks like a filler written by your cat on caffeine.)**

**Review =D.**


	27. Summer Rain

**NOTE: I know that most (if not all) of you are creeped out by the forthcoming Miggy. Keep in mind that (1) This is just the 27****th**** chapter and I have 13-14 chapters left, and (2) That my description and characters indicate FAX. Either I change it, or I stay true to it, and so far, no changes are made.**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own MR.**

* * *

><p>"Seriously guys, no dramatic friendship breakup scene like they always do in those chick-flicks whenever the girl gets a new 'life'?"<p>

Nudge, Ella, and Angel laughed. Then Angel shook her head. "It's not like we're going to rot here all summer while you go along with Iggy, Fang, and Tess. We have our own plans, too."

That was true. Ella had been talking non-stop about how she was going to visit a couple of relatives from Spain since January. Nudge's parents did promise her that they'd let her go to South Korea with her cousins if she ended the year with straight A's, which she did. And Angel's going to Canada for some reason that has something to do with her father's obsession of hockey.

Seems like I'm the only one staying in the states this summer. But as Nudge puts it, I do get to spend it with "my most favorite guy in the world" (definitely her words, not mine).

"So you're really not mad? Promise?"

"Promise." The three of them said at the same time.

Ella smiled and looked at her wristwatch. "You better get packing. You guys are leaving pretty early tomorrow."

* * *

><p>Roadtrips, as awesome and interesting as they sound, aren't always that great. First, you have to consider how many people are coming. Then consider how much stuff you and the people coming along are going to bring. Also remember the dimensions of the car, how much space it has, and how much space that's left after you put all the stuff in.<p>

Then there's the seating arrangement. Always consider the length of the trip and if you can put up with the person/item beside you.

The four of us, plus Iggy's dad, were piled up in their old family van along with a million other useless but-might-be-needed stuff. Mr. Griffith, apparently, is too much of a boy scout and practically packed all the excess furniture from their house "just in case". He's driving, and Iggy's sitting shotgun with his laptop, our most advance link to technology, on his lap. Tess claimed the first row for herself along with a bunch of pots and pans, even if most of the food we packed is mainly camp-fire appropriate. The middle had all our stuff in it, along with a couple of beach stuff. The back of the van contained some firewood. So that meant Fang and I shared the back row.

With the two of us being the only people, and with the stuff heaped up on the floor or underneath the seats, you would've thought that we snagged the separate ends so both of us could get some good view. But no, instead, we're at the very middle, inches apart each other, with tons of pillows on either side of us. I have my earphones plugged in, to pass the time, while Fang's busy either drawing a bunch of lines or writing something.

"You guys back there okay?" Iggy's dad asked. Fang, Tess and I chorused "yes", and he went back to focusing on the road.

"Max," Fang called out.

"Yeah?"

He said something, but I couldn't hear anything because of either the noise or how fast he talked.

"What?" I asked again, louder than intended.

Fang said something like "never mind", but then reached out across me and pulled out the left earphone. I thought he was going to say something, but instead put the earphone in his hear.

"Ed Sheeran?" He asked upon hearing the song that just ended.

I held up my iPod. "It's on shuffle. Deal with it."

The opening bars of a song by Marianas Trench started, and out of the corner of my eye, I could see his fingers tapping against his leg. I quickly checked my library, just in case the three girls decided to play a prank and put Ke$ha and Justin Bieber, or worse, Rebecca Black (Note to self: Find out Fang's opinion on Rebecca Black and her singing). Thankfully, there were none.

Meanwhile, I noticed that the notebook he was writing on a while ago was still open and on his lap. Seeing as he was distracted, I made my move and lunged for the maybe-man-journal.

"Hey!" Fang said, the earphone falling out in the process.

"Seriously, Fang, are you planning to be a doctor? Or is it supposed to be a lawyer?" I asked, eyeing the curvy lines on his notebook. None of them, unfortunately, were legible to my eyes.

"I'm not practicing or planning to be anything." He said, snatching the notebook. He picked up the earphone and put it back in his ear just as the latest song was about to finish.

We spent the rest of the trip listening and not talking.

* * *

><p>"We're here." Iggy's dad said. The engine stopped and everyone got out, the three of us careful not to trip over anything. The Griffiths handled the firewood at the back, Tess grabbed all the pillows, I took all our bags, and Fang handled the rest of the stuff. Iggy's parents had this small beach house, and they gave him access for a couple of days while his dad was going to a high school reunion nearby.<p>

"Max, do you mind getting the pocket knife in my bag?" Iggy asked. I quickly dropped the bags on the old couch inside and opened the pockets of his. There were a bunch of normal teenage stuff, but as I pulled out the pocket knife, a bottle with bubble soap fell out.

You heard me. Tess walked in just in time to see the bottle fall out. She picked it up from the floor and then looked at the pocket knife in my hand.

"Iggy needs that, right?" She asked.

I nodded. She grabbed it, saying that she was going to give it to him and ran outside laughing. I heard something that sounded like "I can't believe you're keeping this from us!" and a bunch of laughter. I headed out, and saw the Fang was sitting on a lawn chair in the porch watching, Tess blow bubbles at Iggy's embarrassed face, his messy, sort-of-spiked hair popping them.

"Those kids sure are crazy." He muttered.

"Yeah."

* * *

><p>"Hey, anyone up for some football?" Tess asked, spinning a soccer ball on the tip of her finger. Iggy's dad had already left, and the four of us were enjoying the strip of beach to ourselves.<p>

Iggy and Fang ran up to each other and exchanged high fives. "Boys against the girls." Iggy called out. Tess nodded in agreement and grabbed a couple of sticks from the shore, then planted them on either side. Then the ball was placed in the center, and the game begun.

Not to brag, but I'm pretty good at soccer. But then I usually play on grass or concrete, and this time it was nothing but sand, shells, and maybe a couple of stray pebbles. All in all it was pretty slippery. Tess was better; she had been in a school team for a couple of years. Fang was way better than Iggy, so he played the offense while Iggy either stood or ran as their defense.

"Over here, Ig!" Fang shouted. Tess ran for the ball, but Iggy maneuvered it halfway and kicked it towards Fang. He easily got it, but he still had to do an about face to get it towards the goal. I, in the meanwhile, was literally behind him, ready to kick it back to Tess.

Instead of turning around, he just moved the ball while half walking/running backwards. He still wasn't aware that I was right behind him, moving in the same direction as he did, looking for an opening to kick the ball to our goal. But that was until he accidentally stepped on my foot. We both fell down within seconds.

You know how in those movies, the leads accidentally fall and the guy's on top, then he suddenly manages not to crash in the girl's face and they make eye contact for a few seconds before either one gets up? Our fall was, well, sort of like that. Yeah, Fang _was_ on top, but he fell backward, and his sand (and sweat) covered back was crushing me. No eye contact was made, obviously.

"You okay, Max?" he asked as soon as he got off me. I leaned on my elbows and saw Iggy and Tess running towards us. Iggy helped me up, and then brushed some of the sand off my head like the sweet maybe-but-not-really boyfriend he was. Fang then made a questioning look on his face and pointed to his elbow. I pointed my elbows at him, which were free of any wounds caused by the fall.

"That was weird." Tess said. "But no way am I leaving this game unfinished."

We continued the game, and I heard Fang mutter "sorry" every time we were near each other, which was mainly every time he stole the ball from me. It wasn't really clear on what he was apologizing for: crushing me when we fell, or stealing the ball.

In the end, Tess and I won. All of us were sweating hard and wiping our faces with anything. Iggy even took off his shirt and used it to wipe himself, even if it was also damp. And, yes, I did eventually sort-of checked him out. Mostly because he was right beside me, and it was hard staring straight ahead for so long.

"I hope the water's cool." Fang said. He got up and ran towards the shore, stripping off his shirt and throwing it to the side in the process. Tess got up and followed, shouting in joy as the waves splashed against her.

"Wanna go for a swim?" I asked Iggy.

He said nothing, but he smiled, took my hand, and dragged me along to the water. I had to admit, it did feel cool. We all swam to a deeper part and splashed each other like little kids.

"It looks like it's going to rain." Tess said looking up at the dark clouds that took over the sky. "Do we have to get out of the water?"

The rain started pouring heavily. "Nope." Iggy said.

"Breath holding contest. I challenge you." Tess said, pointing at Iggy.

"Three… two… one… go!"

Both of them went under, so it was just me and Fang getting hit by the rain. We stared at each other for a moment, and then he got nearer. He was so near that I could see the water dripping off his eyelashes, and he could see mine. We just stood there for a moment, staring at each other.

And then he kissed me.

In a way, the kiss was really romantic. It was raining, and we were in the water, and this nice, romantic song was playing in my head. It was almost perfect. Almost. Iggy or Tess could've come up for air anytime.

Other than that, I had to admit I liked it.

Fang pulled away from me and blinked. Then he took a deep breath and dove under the water, just as Iggy and Tess came up for air.

"I win." Tess declared, splashing water at him.

"No way, I definitely saw you were already out when I came up."

They both turned to me. "Who came up first?" Tess asked.

I shrugged, and did the same as Fang. Even under the water, I could hear the rain splattering on the surface, and Iggy and Tess' argument on who held their breath longer. I could feel the little torrents on my back that the raindrops created. I could feel the waves that were the result of Fang swimming somewhere close.

Someone tapped me on the shoulder, and I turned around and saw Fang. He seemed to be holding out a fist. I threw him an are-you-crazy-what-the-heck-is-that look, but he pointed to his fist with his other hand. I then realized that it was sign language for the letter S. I nodded, and he opened the fist and made a circle, the letter O. I nodded again. He held up both hands, and then crossed his fingers. Two letter R's. Before he could make the next letter, I held up my own fist and stuck out the thumb and the pinky to form a letter Y. Fang nodded, and then swam away.

_Sorry_. How come that word is the most overused when something like this happens between the two of us? I mean, not to sound weird and say I'm not sorry, but I'm pretty sure Fang has better words reserved for an explanation.

Bottom point is: he's getting even more confusing.

* * *

><p><strong>Hey, you. Yes, you. You better appreciate this, because yesterday I woke up at 2AM for a field trip that had a longer travelling time. Then I slept on the bus and had dinner at midnight. You better appreciate this, because this took all day. Which can also explain why it looks like that.<strong>

**(For more weird stuff on my field trip, go ahead and ask me. I'm sure your monitor's thick enough to prevent me from any form of biting.)**

**So yeah, it's December, so I want to ask everyone from NaNoWriMo on how they did. If I joined NaNoWriMo, then maybe I would've reached less than 10K. I'm sure you guys did a great job. Good luck on National Editing Month (if you ever decide to join).**

**I apologize if I sound weird (which I'm sure I do). If you guys think there's something that's not worthy to be included, then just tell me and I can change it.**

**Review and tell me what you think! =D**


	28. The Sun

**Disclaimer: I don't own MR.**

* * *

><p>"Are we really just going to sit here and wait for the sun to go down?" Tess asked.<p>

"Yup," Iggy answered as he adjusted his shades, even if it was already late in the afternoon.

"We're not going to prepare dinner or anything?"

"Nope, I told dad we'd have a bonfire."

Fang looked up from where he was playing with the sand, building a tiny hill. "You brought marshmallows?"

Iggy grinned and produced a small pack of rainbow marshmallows from his pocket. "I always bring marshmallows."

The four of us were sitting on one of the higher spots in the beach, after Iggy announced that "watch a sunset with my first girlfriend" (yes, it was _that _specific) was in his bucket list, and then insisted that Fang and Tess join us. It made me fell even guiltier, remembering that I never really said yes to him, and that I mostly wanted to be with Fang. If possible, that was made even worse when the two sat on either side of me.

With the surf, the silence, and the silhouettes, it would've made a good movie ending. A movie that possibly involved two couples who knew each other. Or something that involved friendship ala _Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants_, only without the pants part. But this wasn't the end, because I could tell by the way Iggy's hand slightly inched his way toward mine. I took a deep breath, and started doing the same thing. Our fingers overlapped in a matter of minutes, and soon enough, Iggy slowly put his fingers through the spaces between mine.

"This is really beautiful." Iggy said as he took of his sunglasses. His piercing blue eyes seemed to stare at me, as if it had a brain of its own and was trying to figure out whether I was going to be honest or not.

"Yeah, it is." I replied.

Deep down, my hand was itching for someone else's, someone who wasn't Iggy.

* * *

><p>"Pass the string cheese. If there's still some." Iggy said as he tossed a couple of marshmallows into his mouth.<p>

After the guilt-racking sunset watching was crossed of the list, Fang grabbed a lamp and we started setting up a campfire. The menu for the night was marshmallows, hotdogs, and bacon on a stick. String cheese might've been an option, but that was before we started spreading it on each other like it was the latest beauty regiment.

"None anymore." I said, eyeing the empty containers. I loaded my barbecue stick with a combination of hotdogs and marshmallows. Tess was beside me, perfectly contented with classic marshmallows attempted to be arranged in some sort of pattern. Iggy, who was on my other side, was busy folding up a strip of bacon in an accordion style and putting it on his barbecue stick, along with a couple of marshmallows. Fang sat across me, and coincidentally seemed to dig hotdogs and marshmallows, too.

Iggy shrugged and scraped off some of the string cheese on his arm and then used it to cover the bacon.

"Is that even legal?" Tess asked.

"Is that even edible?" Fang questioned.

"Did you even take a bath after getting out of the water?" I inquired.

"Probably, yes, and no." Iggy grinned as he let the flames linger over the bacon. "Remind me to try this with the microwave when we get back."

"Well, whatever you do, use your own." Fang said as he pinched a marshmallow between his fingers and pulled it out from the stick.

"Can we sleep here?" Tess asked as she hugged her knees to her chest.

"We'll probably wake up in who-knows-where, just like in _The Hangover Part II_." Iggy snorted.

I got up. "Want me to get the sleeping bags?"

Tess nodded. "I'll help you." Iggy said as he stood up, like he was preparing to carry a king-sized bed. I grabbed a flashlight and Iggy followed me as we made the short trek to the house.

"You having fun?" Iggy asked once we got inside.

"You sound like an overly concerned parent." I said as I leaned against the counter. "But yeah, I am having fun." And feeling really, really, really guilty at the same time.

He moved closer until he was a feet away from me. "Glad to hear that," he smiled.

"You planning to sleep out tonight?" I asked, attempting to fill in what was about to become an awkward silence. "The stars look really good tonight."

"I guess. And Fang would probably point out all the constellations like he always does."

Fang. I remembered that night when we were sophomores, spending the evening in the clearing, thinking that a hug was the farthest I'd ever go with him. Which clearly turned out to be wrong.

Iggy moved in even closer, until we were probably a millimeter from each other, him looking down, me looking up, and him closing the distance between our lips. There was no spark; it was only a kiss. And unlike the ones I had with Fang, where I was thinking of him, and only him, I found myself thinking about how I kissed two guys less than twenty-four hours apart and how different people would react to this.

My mom would never ever hear about it, and neither would my dad, who would probably give me some embarrassing talk about safe sex while some guy working for Skype watched and laughed at the conversation. The Gasman would make a face and say something about cooties, even if he obviously knows more than that. Angel would probably also think of different reactions from different people. Nudge would squeal and say that the "love triangle" between the three of us was heating up. Ella would try to compare the two of them to see who was "better boyfriend material". Fang and Tess would not react, though Fang might think about how we kissed less than twenty-four hours before and how the people he knew would react.

And Iggy, who pulled away after almost a minute of making out with a really goofy but genuinely happy grin plastered to his face, would never hear about this, and would be broken if he ever did.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Fang<strong>_

"Pass the marshmallows." Tess said, mostly to break the silence. I sighed and grabbed the almost empty pack lying where Iggy was sitting a while ago.

"What do you think happened with those two?" Tess asked as she looked at the house.

"Maybe they're still looking for the sleeping bags amongst the piles of useless stuff Mr. Griffith packed?"

"Or…"

_Probably making out without any idea where the sleeping bags were._ I shrugged instead, and Tess resumed with digging marshmallows from the pack.

After a couple of minutes, Max's flashlight sliced through the dark and the two of them sat down, carrying two sleeping bags each. Iggy was blushing faintly, sort of glancing at Max, who had no reaction. She put down the sleeping bags and started playing with the zipper on Iggy's jacket, which she was wearing.

Yep, they probably spent a minute or two making out _and then_ started looking for the sleeping bags. Tess and I exchanged glances, and from the mischievous twinkle in her eye, I could tell that she was going to convince Iggy's parents to give him a Talk when we got back.

"Any requests?" I asked, grabbing my guitar, to break the awkward glances everyone seemed to throw at each other lately.

"'Campfire song' song." Max called out. "And no way am I singing it."

"Neither am I." Iggy, Tess, and I all said at the same time.

"Nothing from the Jonas Brothers, please." Tess said picking out an overcooked marshmallow.

"Iggy?"

"Nothing from Big Time Rush or anything resembling that." Iggy said.

"What the hell is going on with the guy band references?" I turned to look at Max. "First song that comes to your mind?"

She blinked, before blurting out, "_You Suck at Love_? Simple Plan."

I adjusted the guitar. "Something I can sing, at least."

I started playing, and singing in a low voice, that according to the drama club last year, something that I could only "flaunt at its maximum power". I watched Tess slightly sway and eat marshmallows. I watched Iggy and Max hold hands and Max manage a small smile, which was sad in a way.

Who was really supposed to sing this song? And to whom was this song supposed to be sung to?

I had a feeling Max knew the answer to both.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Max<strong>_

We spent most of the evening throwing song requests at Fang, and learning names of constellations and stars that I already knew somewhere in the back of my mind from that lesson one night from Fang. I spent the rest of the evening feeling guiltier by the second. And when I woke up in the morning, I felt like someone from _Hangover Part II_, only without the major hangover part.

It was really early, but not the type of early where it was totally dark and you still had to use a flashlight to find your way through. There were hints of light somewhere far away, which meant that the sun was about to make its big and dramatic entrance like it always did.

Tess was still sleeping. Iggy looked like he'd been slumbering on the sand for ages. But the sleeping bag where Fang was supposed to be dozing off in was neatly rolled, the sand around it filled with marks which would've equaled to footprints on solid ground. I was tired, but then I wasn't in the mood for anymore sleeping so my only legit option was to follow the tracks. Soon enough, I could see Fang sitting on the same spot where the four of us watched the sun set.

"Too early to wake up on a summer morning huh?" I asked as I took a spot beside him.

He shrugged. "Couldn't sleep."

"Me either. Do you usually wake up this early?"

"Only on a school day."

"That's still too early."

"Well, have you ever watched the sun rise? Besides while watching a movie?"

"Nope."

"Then you're going to be amazed."

"Uh-huh."

We spent the next few minutes in silence, watching as the sky change into a couple of different hues and the sun slowly show itself, with the seagulls and other birds flying to it like in the paintings.

"It's pretty, isn't it?" Fang asked, leaning back, his hand precariously close to mine, that sirens were already flashing in my brain, warning me that there was a guy who liked me that could wake up any minute now and see me and his best friend almost hold hands like he never existed.

"Yeah, I guess it is. Sort of looks like a painting."

"I agree with that."

I looked back and breathed a sigh of relief once there was no sign that Iggy or Tess were about to get up.

"I can hear Iggy snoring all the way here."

Fang shrugged off the comment, since they were best friends and all that. "That always happens to him when he's exposed to too much light and warmth. No possible explanation, I guess."

The sun continued to reveal itself. Neither of the two sleepy heads were showing any sign of waking up, Fang was still leaning back, and his hand was still close to mine. Sirens were still flashing in my brain, but there was no plan of moving my hand farther.

"Um, Max…"

"Yeah?"

"Iggy's never going to find out, about, you know… what happened yesterday, way before the campfire?"

_The kiss?_ I wanted to say in the kind of voice girls used when they acted confident. But I wasn't confident. And neither did I want to sound like a total a-hole nor the kind of girl that was used to making out with at least two different guys in a day, which I was pretty sure completely turned Fang off.

"Yeah, that, yesterday," I said in my normal nervous voice, which I swear was true because Iggy's snores in the background was a constant reminder on what could happen.

"He's not going to find out, right?" He asked?

I turned to look at him, making eye contact in a business-y sort of way. "He should never find out."

"Is this a deal?"

"Yeah, this is a deal."

He held out his hand, and I shook it like we were actual businessmen. Our fates were practically sealed.

* * *

><p><strong>Yeah, I know I've been gone for two weeks. I swear that I already had the plot, just not how to write it in a completely appealing way that didn't result to another cliché kiss between Fax. Plus my school DIDN'T START THE VACATION UNTIL THE TWENTIETH. How freaking nearing is that to Christmas, huh?<strong>

**So yes, it's the holidays, where rain and cold winds equal to snow in the tropics. Where prices are suddenly higher and malls more crowded. Where everything, even orange traffic cone icons are dressed up in Santa caps. Where holiday-themed TV show episodes and made-for-TV-movies with a holiday theme start to appear (I'm currently obsessing over episode 11 of **_**Hey Arnold'**_**s first season).**

**So I still apologize for the rush-y-ness of this chapter, or at least most of the parts there. But then I'm too much of a procrastinator to go back and change it. Hey, I'm on vacation people.**

**This is probably my last post for 2011.**

**Remember guys, treat this Christmas like it's going to be your last! And don't forget to give me a present by reviewing =D.**

**HAPPY HOLIDAYS =D**


	29. Fang

**Somewhere in the back of your mind, you (yes, you) must be wondering why I never write more than 3,000 words (sans A/Ns and line breaks) or add a trillion more pages every time I write, even if I'm gone for almost a month. That is mainly to avoid your eyes getting burned by my crappy, trying-too-hard-to-make-it-long-and-awesome writing. But since it is Christmas (or at least it still is over here), I might as well give a present. No matter how cheap I am.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own MR.**

* * *

><p><em><strong>Fang<strong>_

One thousand, three hundred seven days and counting: that's how long it is. That's how long it's been. But then, I'm probably doing the wrong math and shouldn't start counting at January. Either way, it's pretty darn long.

There was freshman year. The _Twilight _quoting, the guitar lessons, the confessions, and the singing. Minimal contact. Any interaction screamed business. No non-musical involvement, save for the _Twilight_ quoting and the confession. To summarize it, we were still pretty much strangers.

Sophomore year still screamed business, with the bet and the dance lessons. But then it got weirder after that. There was the other confession, the quoting, the stargazing, the hug, the kiss, the after party, and the other kiss. A sign that things were definitely going to get trickier the next year.

There are no words for my junior year. There was the play, the replacement, the accident, the ice cream, the midnight talk, the midnight kiss, the other kiss, the party, Iggy's confession, the roadtrip, another kiss, and the sunrise.

I really don't think I'd be able to handle my senior year.

Almost everything, or at least almost everything significant in my life reminds me of Max. My family, my friends, school. Somehow she unintentionally manages to get mixed up in some random situation with me, regardless of who started it. And she doesn't even know it, unless I was the one who caused it.

So who is Max? I mean, who is Max _for me_? In freshman year she was a stranger; sophomore year she was a friend; junior year she slightly became something more.

And then she suddenly managed to become my best friend's girlfriend. Not that I think she's horrible or anything, but it's like, yesterday I just met her, and tomorrow I'd be telling my grandchildren a hundred different stories, ninety-nine of them including Max in some major role. Like I said, we somehow always manage to get involved with each other.

So, really, how do I feel about it? And how does she feel about it? To make it clear, emotions are, without doubt, not my forte. Not on mine, not on hers, and definitely not on anyone else's. I know that the emoticon with the equal sign and capital D means that a person is showing happiness and all that stuff. But when it comes to reading emotions, I'm like the frustrated student that the teacher hates because no matter how many times he'll try to teach me, I'll always be getting it in a minute and then get confused about it in the next. At first I'd be confident, knowing that I'd planned out every facial expression, every conversation, and every witty remark in my head. But then there'd suddenly be an unexpected twist, making me lose control and leave most of my plans useless.

I'm going to dive in. I'm going to dissect everything. I'm going to get answers. I'm going to solve the mystery that is between me and Maximum Ride.

* * *

><p><em><strong>A Conversation with Nudge; Half a Year Ago<strong>_

I'd already known Nudge before; she was my partner a couple of times in English. I knew she was friends with Max, but whenever we talked it was mostly about the class, about me, or about her, and she really talks a lot. She almost never mentioned Max except for a couple of stories that happened between the four of them. And somehow, whenever Nudge talks, I find myself talking, too.

"_You make Max actually sound nice and fun to hang out with." I whispered during one of our conversations. The teacher had given Nudge a stern look when she giggled. "You make her sound… normal. Really normal."_

"_Well, yeah, she is sort of normal. Being the strong and scary person she is just takes the whole day to be done. Like it's her full-time job, and being normal is sort of a sideline. Except that she's a regular there, too."_

_ "How can you even tell if she's normal?"_

_ "Well, it's no secret that Max denies too much girliness, I mean, she wears the same ensemble everyday and she always refuses to take my fashion advice. But there are times that when she's really, really, really pissed off and wants every one to know and that they should never approach her unless they want to be round-housed. And for that, she chooses all her toughest and worn out clothes. It's practically the only sign that she's fashion conscious. Every specific level of bad-ass-ness she feels also has a specific touch to her ensemble."_

_ "Um, okay?"_

_ "And she has a thing for boys, too. Actually, it's more like she has feelings for a certain guy."_

I don't take part in the school's rumor mill. I've never taken part and probably won't want to. But saying Maximum Ride likes a boy is equal to saying that Clark Kent was actually Wonder Woman all along. In short, very, very, very, very impossible. So it was simply just like an offer I couldn't refuse.

_"Maximum Ride likes a boy? That'd be the day."_

_ "She does. He's literally her 'dark knight'. You know there was one time-"_

_ The teacher gave her another unyielding look and she snapped her mouth shut. I glanced at her, giving a "carry on" look, but she smiled knowingly at me and shook her head._

_ "I'd rather you not get roundhouse-d by her." She whispered back. "But he literally is her _dark knight_." She added, emphasizing the term "dark knight"._

* * *

><p><em><strong>A Conversation with Ella; Four months ago<strong>_

With Ella was a different case. I never knew her much though I recognized her in a few of my classes, and I sometimes passed her on the way to a class. I wasn't exactly familiar with Ella, except for the fact that she was pure Hispanic yet one hundred percent American. Most of conversations we had were educationally related.

I met her and had a conversation with her one time, when I went to the local animal shelter in hopes of finding a pet for my cousin. She was one of the volunteers there, and I saw her feeding a couple of pugs while I was looking through the kennel.

_"You a volunteer?" I asked once we were finished with the recognizing and greeting part._

_ "Yeah. Actually, I only volunteered because Max forced me too. But this job rocks, anyway."_

I wasn't actually surprised about Ella being forced by Max. The girl can be pretty convincing without the "cherries on top" crap. But Max _volunteering_? That was absolutely unexpected.

_"Max is a _volunteer_?" I asked._

_ "Yep." Ella said, standing up. "Her mom's a veterinarian who works part time privately and full time here. And, well, she has a soft spot for animals, too."_

_ "A soft spot."_

_ "Yes, she actually has one. One for animals, one for family and friends, and one for a 'dark knight'." She said with a knowing smile; the same one on Nudge's face a couple of months ago. That smile, and the mention of Max's dark knight._

_ "So it is true; Max does have a type."_

_ "She does. Actually, it's really, really specific; it's more like a description of the guy. That's mainly because she never had a type before and suddenly started liking him. So every time something about him changes, so does the type. Like one day she'll see him play the harmonica, so that'll be added. Then the next day she'll see him playing the guitar, so she'll add that, too."_

_ "But really, what is her type?"_

_ "You sound like you like her."_

_ "As if she'd allow that."_

_ "I can't tell you, anyway." She said with another knowing smile. "Just seeing her roundhouse kicks hurt; I wouldn't want anyone to actually feel it."_

Knowing smile: strike two. "Dark Knight": strike two. Mention of a roundhouse kick: strike two.

Somehow talking with Max's friends made Max more mysterious, more confusing, more "What the heck is going on in that brain of hers? For real?"

* * *

><p><em><strong>A Conversation with Angel; Two Months Ago<strong>_

Angel, like Max, had a reputation. That girl was more convincing than the ShamWow guy, only she didn't need to talk that fast; she was more manipulative than Max. I'm pretty sure she's the most scheming person everyone has ever known. It was like she could control you; make you do anything, anytime.

I once came across her during the first few days of summer, a couple of days after the sleepover at Iggy's I saw her on the swings with a calm look on her face, which either meant she was pondering about life or she was trying to make squirrels bring her acorns and probably worship her.

_As soon as I snapped my fingers, Angel got out of her reverie and greeted me, like she wasn't trying to take over a group of squirrels just a couple of minutes ago._

_ "Haven't seen you here before." I said, sitting one swing apart so I could twist and turn it without bumping her._

_ "Babysitting," She answered, looking in the direction of a girl about eight years old that was trying to chase a flock of birds while a Dalmatian followed her. "You?"_

_ "Walking around. Contemplating."_

_ "Oh yeah, about what?"_

_ "People. Life. What to cook for dinner."_

_ "How're Max and her 'Pale Knight' doing?" She asked. There it was again: that knowing smile the three of them shared._

_ "'Pale Knight'? Don't you mean '_Dark_ Knight'?"_

_ Angel shrugged. "Name's changed."_

_ "What do you mean?"_

_ "They changed the name. And adjusted the type, I guess."_

_ "So you're saying Iggy's not the dark knight?"_

_ "No I'm not implying that. People change, y'know?"_

_ "So why did dark suddenly turn to pale?"_

_ She shrugged again. "Maybe because pale is the knew dark?"_

_ "Uh-huh."_

_ "Anyway, we use a lot of code names. 'Dark Knight' just sort of stuck, since it has a sort-of ironic ring to it."_

The answer was good enough, but the actions weren't as convincing. The knowing smile was gone, but she still had that meaningful look on her face, like she knew better. Which she obviously did.

I seriously hope that no one knew about what happened between Max and me.

_"So, really, are those two fine?"_

_ "Yeah, they're doing pretty good so far. Iggy looks at Max like he's never seen a girl before, except he's not always that nervous."_

_ "Ah, a natural advantage for being a ladies' man, of course."_

_ "Touché."_

_ "You think they'll actually end up together?"_

_ "Who knows? Maybe they will."_

But I could somehow feel my heart refuse, like it was fighting for a different cause.

* * *

><p>I can be a little paranoid with details. If I worked for a newspaper, I'd be their fact checker. Most of the time I'd refuse to hear anything unless I'd heard it from two reliable sources or if I'd heard it at least thrice from average resources or I've known and witnessed it for myself. And hearing about Max's love life from her friends is definitely sufficient evidence.<p>

So far, the only suspicious thing was the knowing looks. But "only" wasn't very useful, since distinguishing the fact that there was an actual secret between the four of them was practical enough as it was. And as cliché as it may be, their mystery focused on a guy. A man. A chap. A male.

And that guy, was he really Iggy? Because it really did sound like Angel was implying that Iggy was not the so called "Dark Knight". So did that mean Max didn't like Iggy?

Well I should know, since I was the one who made out with her, right?

It was no lie that Iggy liked Max. He was so much in love with her that it sometimes made Tess and I figuratively puke. And she really had a point about the kiss; Iggy should never know about it or his soul will be wrecked. For life.

So who did Max really, truly, genuinely, actually like?

That shall remain a mystery. But maybe not for long.

* * *

><p>Like I said, I'm not good at handling emotions. That doesn't necessarily mean I can't control them. I'm not really the type to bawl out every five minutes. In reality, I'm the exact opposite. Whenever there are times that I don't know what to feel, or whenever one of my plans go wrong and I'm not sure what to express, I become (and usually remain) an emotionless rock. Silent. Sort of Motionless. Impassive on the outside. Doing a lot of deep thinking on the inside.<p>

Like the couple of times there's an awkward situation involving Max.

And as previously mentioned, I don't know what to feel. I don't know what to feel around her. I don't know what to feel about her. I just know that she's been an awesome friend, and she might've been something more if Iggy didn't ask her out.

The real question: If Iggy never asked Max out, would she really be something more for me? Would I _want_ her to be something more for me? Would _she_ want to be something more for me?

Okay, so I repeat things a lot. But to make it short, If Iggy wasn't "between us", would she like me? Would I like her?

God I can't even answer a question only _I_ have the answer to.

Maybe the fact that my brain says, "don't do anything stupid, like kissing her again" whenever she's there indicates that I'm shy around her, but then I wouldn't want to be repeatedly kissed by someone who has no idea what to feel around me, and then repeatedly apologize. Max probably thinks I'm a doofus. Or a weirdo. Or this creepy guy who doesn't really like to admit he's a player, which also makes me wonder how she always manages to put up with me whenever we hang out, post-kiss/es.

Still, I have to admit that I have to ask myself what's really on my mind. Not just when Max is around, but whenever pops up in my head, or whenever someone mentions her name, or whenever I see something or go somewhere that reminds me of her. I have to just repeatedly keep on asking the same question for eons. And then I have to ask again. And again and again, to be sure if I really like her or think about her that way. Just like fact checking.

I want my answer to be final. I want to know if I should really think she's the one.

* * *

><p><em><strong>A Conversation with Iggy; Right before we left the beach<strong>_

After the night where he and Max came back from getting the sleeping bags and probably making out, Iggy looked like the happiest man alive. Even when there was one point that he'd gotten at least three consecutive cuts from the rocks in less than twenty minutes. Every time I glanced at him, he'd always look like he just won the lottery. He was so happy that I could puke from too much invisible rainbows coming from him, though not literally.

Of course, he was so happy that he could tell the whole world about what happened between the two of them. Including me. Even if there's a chance that Max might roundhouse both of us for that. Actually, we may get more than a roundhouse.

_"God I just feel so freaking lucky." Iggy said, leaning back on his elbows, staring in the late afternoon sun as the waves splashed our feet. Both of us had finished packing while Max and Tess were still inside cramming all their stuff back into their bags._

_ "Sure ya do."_

_ "I mean, when I was going to kiss Max, I'd thought she'd push away and call me a pig or something. But she didn't she kissed me back."_

Ah. So _he_ was the one who took action. Of course, she wasn't even drunk or spiked or intoxicated. It made me think of that kiss at the party. What would happen if Iggy walked in on us? Would Max suddenly turn sober and possibly chase after him and/or slap me? The thought must've made me cringe, but Iggy was probably still too happy to notice.

_"You made out with her?" I asked in my "You don't say?" voice._

_ "Duh."_

_ "I would never know!" I asked, my statement dripping pure sarcasm. But Iggy was still trapped in his cheerful demeanor to notice. "Let me guess. That was during the two of you grabbed the sleeping bags one night."_

_ "Yes," he said proudly, his face turning a light pink. "I guess that's one achievement unlocked."_

_ "So now I you have achievements?"_

_ "Probably. I just… I just like her so much. So much that I might possibly love her, even. Who wouldn't like her? Don't you like her?"_

Who wouldn't like her? Possibly everyone, except maybe the librarian because she does stay quiet in the library. And her family. And her friends. And Iggy and Tess.

And me.

_"Uh, yeah… I guess I like her. In a platonic way, of course."_

_ "Random question…"_

_ I nodded, giving him a signal that it was okay to throw a query on whatever._

_ "If I never had the guts to ask her out, would you? Would you like her enough to ask her out?"_

To my surprise, my heart started doing leaps. My brain, per agreement with my heart, gave out a comeback that sounded like, "I wish the 'if' was gone. I wish it really never happened."

But my conscience certainly had other things in mind.

_"Max is pretty nice for a troublemaker. I'd probably ask her out."_

_ He went for a bro-fist. "Great minds think alike, don't they?"_

My brain was still screaming in rage, probably for not letting out the snide response that was waiting to get out inside of me. But I was nicer than that.

After all, if you liked a person who was taken, you wouldn't want to be rude to her boyfriend, right? Because then she'd hate you, too, even if he became her ex. And their common hatred for you might as well bring them back together.

Though I'm sure that that situation would never apply to me.

* * *

><p><em><strong>A Conversation with Tess; Right before we left for the beach<strong>_

Even after the soap-opera worthy episode of me finding out I have a half-sister, namely Tess, things settled down a bit. Although no, she did not move in with my family because she has her own set of parents. And her own set of siblings. And her own set of equally annoying relatives.

Being my best friend for most of the part (which I thought would be impossible. No, I wasn't hoping for us to be something more), she knew I had a lot of secrets. Like how I cried and said I wanted a "thimble" after watching _Peter Pan_ back in 2003. Or how I liked to tell people I had an irrational fear of beards just to see their reaction, even if it meant being a total a-hole.

But no, she never knew about all those kisses to Max, or how stupid I acted right after them. My love life, thankfully, was one thing she did not want to know. Although, no, I don't exactly consider Max part of my love life. Yet. I would've said "sexual activity" any other day, but that would be too embarrassing. And I'd get killed if she ever heard about it. That might be impossible (by which I mean Max hearing about this), but you can never be too careful.

To get to the bottom line, we did not pack together. She did not mess with my bag and found a shirt with a hole by the armpit. She did not help me fit everything into the bag. She did not remind me to pack my toothbrush and deodorant. But we did meet up after on her condition, so we could discuss possible comebacks and one-liners to throw at the two. Tess wanted to do everything humanely impossible for them to feel embarrassed and get a Talk with their parents.

Well, Iggy did receive a rather uncomfortable sermon from his dad when we got back.

_"Let's just hope nothing… _actual_ happens with those two." Tess said as she typed something quickly on her phone._

_ "Well, if something did, it's not like we won't let them die from embarrassment."_

_ "True." She said, and I shifted uneasily in reply._

_ "You're feeling awkward about those two, aren't you?" She asked, a scheming smile on her lips._

_ "Well, I wouldn't want to walk in on those two."_

_ "Point. But…" She put a cupped hand close to her ear and moved in closer. "I hear that," she pointed to the left of my chest, "saying something."_

_ "And what is it saying?"_

_ She looked up with a big grin. "You're in love! You have a crush!"_

_ "What, on those two?"_

_ She nodded. "Someone wants to be the third party!"_

_ "Jeez, Tess. I do not like Max in a non-platonic way. And I especially do not want Iggy like _that_."_

_ "So what, you want to be Max's mother-in-law?"_

_ "Never."_

My heart suddenly came skipping in. Yes, it did not want to be Max's mother-in-law. Yes, it did not want Iggy like _that_. But it stopped at the part about the third party. It stopped at the part about me liking someone. Someone, who, hopefully, remained unidentified for Tess. Because I also had no darn idea who I actually liked.

Was I perhaps Peter Pan, the clueless runaway who never grew up and was naïve to the actual concept of love? And that someone had to give me my first "thimble" so that I'd finally be "free"? If that was ever the case, then Max would be my Wendy.

She was the first girl who kissed me. She was the first girl I actually kissed without a dare as a background for a reason. And I was amazingly happy with that.

Was it possible that there was a part of me that liked Maximum Ride?

* * *

><p>If someone ever came up to me, someone who knew well about my sort of underdeveloped friendship with Max (since confidentiality contracts made up most of the glue binding us together), and that someone asked me if I liked Max, I'd do a flat-out denial. No one likes good gossip about themselves, no matter how juicy. And no one likes to get beaten up by Maximum Ride.<p>

But if someone came up to me, someone who knew Max quite well and would never lie about anything to her, like… Max herself, and then asked me if I liked her, I'd do delaying. I'd exclaim, or curse, then I'd ask why and I'd continue to question their motive or need to get an answer. Even if it was Max.

After all, you can't copy the answers from someone who has nothing written on their paper yet. Meaning, no one will ever get an answer to my question unless I get one on my own, which possibly leads to some story about flashbacks and self-discovery.

I learned from that conversation with Iggy that there was a chance I'd go out with her, but no answer if there was a possibility that she'd agree with that. From the discussion that went on between Tess and me, I found out that there was some explanation for me kissing Max more than thrice, and that was because a part of me somehow liked her more than a friend. Nudge, Angel, and Ella gave the hint that Max liked someone, for real, and their expressions revealed that there were odds that that guy was not Iggy.

And so the story shall continue.

I know now. I know how and what I feel about Max. I know the answers to the question. And a lot of craziness will definitely happen after this.

That was my final answer. But I know that I'm still oblivious about something.

I will never, ever get to find out from Max herself who really is her "knight in shining armor".

* * *

><p><strong>*Pokes you in the arm* Hey, wake up. And wipe that drool off your chin.<strong>

**And that, my dear readers, is why I never write more than 3,000 words. To avoid insanity, too much mind-blowing grammatical errors (you tell me; autocorrect is not all it seems to be), and repeated repetition. I didn't actually read it as one whole chapter; I read it aloud piece by piece, right after writing. For those who want a blurb/summary thing: Does Fang really have feelings for Max? To find answers, he must go through a couple of flashbacks and do a lot of deep thinking.**

**(You can request the remainder of the story to be like this, but that would mean fewer updates and more madness.)**

**I dedicate this to my thesaurus (synonyms[according to Word]: lexicon, vocabulary, glossary, phrase book, word list).**

**So yeah, even if my handwriting slightly took a wrong turn, at least I actually got the effort to type it all, right? Besides, one more chapter 'til the end of Part 3 (I accept suggestions for Part 4 =D).**

**Hope you appreciate the present =D. Maligayang Pasko at Manigong Bagong Taon!**


	30. Heartbroken

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own MR.**

* * *

><p>"I'm not sure if I can handle this anymore."<p>

Nudge, Ella, and Angel looked up from the table. There was at least two and a half weeks left before vacation ended, and the four of us decided to meet up and trade photos. Or at least the three of them were swapping pictures. I, on the other hand, was obliged to narrate every single moment I spent with Iggy, Fang, and Tess.

"What can't you handle anymore?" Nudge asked, holding a thick stack of the shots Ella took during her trip to Spain.

"Being with Iggy."

"Since when were you able to handle any actual romantic involvement with Iggy?" Ella asked.

"I don't know. I guess that it was more of a pity party. But it's making me feel so guilty. Especially when we kissed."

The girls squealed a little when they first heard the story, but now it was filled with nothing but silence. Silence and contemplating looks.

"I can't believe we let you do something that stupid." Angel said.

"I can't believe I let myself do something stupid either. But you know our original plan, meaning I was actually supposed to say something to Fang before Iggy made any serious moves. I guess none of us expected that. And I'm stupid for not stopping."

"Oh, the three of us were stupid for not stopping you, too." Ella added.

"So, are you planning to end things with him?" Nudge asked. "It is, after all, a summer romance. What happens in the summer, stays in the summer." She added in a non-comforting way.

"Except for heartbreak, apparently."

"There's a point in that." Angel said. "It might just turn to first-day blues, but as far as I'm concerned, Max has been Iggy's first. And almost everyone knows the chances of completely getting over first loves."

Great. My stomach twisted in knots, and, if possible, it made me feel guiltier than guiltiest. And though that would make Fang madder, he was the least of my concerns at the moment.

After all, no decent person doesn't feel guilty about breaking someone's heart.

"But you are going to have to break it to him sooner or later." Ella added. "Unless you suddenly realized that Iggy's the right guy."

"I don't know. I highly doubt it, that he's the right guy. In a way, he's literally too nice for me. Too much of a gentleman. Plus, I'm not sure I can handle having a relationship wherein the first few months were spent lying to him; that doesn't sound good anywhere."

"True," Nudge chimed in. "That would make it sound like those soap operas where the boy takes a bet to date a girl and suddenly falls in love with her, a hundred percent. And then the girl would find out about the bet. And that would pretty much break her heart."

"Yeah. Sometimes I feel like the whole world would be better if I was single."

"So do you have a plan?" Ella asked.

"Right now, all I'm hoping to do is to let him down in the sincerest way possible. No friend-zone mentions or anything related to that. I just need a time and place."

Of course, friend-zone mentions wouldn't be very useful, as proven in many sitcoms and real-life situations. Charles Colton once said, "_Friendship often ends in love; but love in friendship - never."_

I stood up from my seat. "I'll meet you guys later."

"Where are you going?" Nudge asked.

"I just need to think things through clearly. I don't think a rushed out heartbreaking moment would benefit the both of us. That'll just make me feel worse."

"Just text us." Angel said, giving a small smile.

I nodded, and I fast-walked out of the café, leaving thoughts about breakups for a split second. My best option, the best person I could talk to about this, even if he had no idea I was doing this for someone else instead of Iggy, was unfortunately a thousand miles away with a huge time zone difference.

I only had one available option. And even if I have to reveal more than half the truth to him, which anyone sane enough would never recommend to me, I seriously hoped he was there.

I headed straight to the clearing, praying that Fang was where I wished he was.

* * *

><p>There was no indication that a mysterious, dark-haired guy, who looked emo was lurking in the shadows when I arrived. It had been a month or two since I last went here, but that was the usual intervals. And this was the third time I came on my own.<p>

The first one ended up in him arriving and giving me a kiss before he left.

The second one ended up in him actually being there before I arrived, and giving me a kiss before we both left.

I had to admit that there was this part of me that secretly desired for Fang to arrive and kiss me again. But that was a little too cliché, and I'm pretty sure that he'd been avoiding me a bit more a couple of days after we got back from the beach. Every time I caught him glancing in my general direction (and probably Iggy's, too), he looked like he was either having trouble seeing either one of us, or he was bitter and single (though very highly unlikely on both parts) and was mad at "us" for being so "in love with each other", or he wanted to eat me, and was thinking of a way on how he'd do that without pissing Iggy off (because no one wants to eat their best friend, and no one wants to piss their best friend off by eating the current person they like).

I turned out looking a little too desperate for someone who wasn't my boyfriend, someone who probably had already put me in the friend zone. But I'm still wishing for him to come.

So what was I supposed to do now? The main reason I went there was to look for Fang. But then, since the clearing is where either one of us come to think, I should at least sit down for fifteen minutes and reflect on the girls' words, right? I started scaling the tree (yes, the very one where the so-called "midnight kiss" [or on a weirder term, the "first kiss of the day" as coined by Nudge] took place.

For the next twenty minutes, I zoned out and did a run-through of everything that happened, starting out from _Cyrano de Bergerac_, and skimming on a couple of memories from _Aladdin_. From what I remember, Iggy wasn't the type to give not-so-subtle clues. In fact, he wasn't even the type to give clues in general, which inspired a question: When did Iggy start to like me anyway? I didn't even look _that_ hot in _Aladdin_, no matter how much body glitter Tess tried to put on me. Actually, Iggy was less mysterious but way more secretive than Fang.

I therefore conclude that I still have no freaking idea how to shake Iggy off in a gentle way.

I gave up trying to decipher more thoughts and went down the tree. I did a three-sixty, just to make sure that Fang wasn't actually hiding behind one of the trunks, contemplating on his own. When I was sure he wasn't there, I walked the path out of the clearing and back into the park.

Then I saw him sitting on the swings.

Clad in his usual emo palette of colors, Fang was staring ahead, making no move to raise himself higher into the air, though his hands were gripping the metal chains so tightly like he was a thousand feet up.

"How long have you been here?" I asked, sitting on the swing beside his and forcing it up a little.

"Ten minutes or so." He replied without moving or turning his head to acknowledge me. "How long have _you_ been here?"

"I was at the clearing for the past half hour. Thinking again."

"About what?"

"About ending things with Iggy."

That brought him back from the real world. He turned to look at me with a half-shocked look on his face. "Why?" He asked.

"I guess I'll never be able to love him as much as he loves me."

"He'll probably never love anyone else as much as he loves you."

"I'm more _old, alone, done for_."

"Details."

"It'll probably better if I remain single for the rest of my life. Plus, a guy like Iggy is too nice for a girl like me.

"So you suddenly realized that you two weren't meant for each other?"

I nodded reluctantly.

"Do I want to know why else?"

"It's better if Iggy knows first. Promise me one thing though."

"What?"

"Help Iggy move on, and maybe get over it, too."

He nodded, and I got up and left him by himself on the swings, so he could do a little thinking, too.

The third time I went to the clearing on my own, Fang arrived after me and gave me a short questionnaire before I left.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Three days later.<strong>_

It took the rest of the afternoon to think of a plan, it took the rest of the next morning to debate with myself and go against asking the girls what I should do, and it took the rest of the night to fight the urge to consult dad on how breaking up should be done. One does not simply do things that would hurt any other person to upset a unique one, as they all have different things they dislike.

Also, let's not forget that break ups were never meant to end good.

So how do you break up with a nice guy? One so nice, that you can't seem to notice his flaws? How do you part ways with someone who's always been everyone else's dream guy, when you want to ride against the current?

Who knew WikiHow had so many tips?

During my quite uninspired search, the internet kept on repeating one thing: Break it to him gently. It also told me other things to do, you know. Like to tell him personally, or still try to be friends with him, or to answer all his questions without seeming to be in a hurry, but then make sure it gets done by the end of the day.

Now all I need was a twist of fate, something that put me off for a while, just to avoid seeing a heartbroken face. Iggy was always outside in the summer (mostly to experiment with stuff that I don't really know), and that morning I decided to head out for some fresh air uptown, several blocks from where Iggy lived.

Somehow, we always managed to come across each other.

"Max, is that you?" Iggy called out as I was making my way to one of the shops he frequented.

I turned around, not in fake surprise, since I was actually expecting to see him in the shop instead. "Hey." I smiled.

"You going there?" He asked, pointing to the store.

"Yeah, just wanted to hang around."

"You wanna take a walk instead?"

I'd feel guilty if Iggy actually sped this up, since I was hoping that hanging around the store first would delay things. But I still had to be nice. He was after all, very nice to me.

"Sure. Lead the way." I said, and I followed Iggy to one of the tiny parks seen every mile or two. We sat down on the bench, and I was still trying to think of how to start. Iggy meanwhile, held my hand and kissed my cheek swiftly.

"Iggy…"

He blushed. "Sorry."

"No. It's me. I'm sorry."

He looked confused, and I went on. "I'm sorry that I'm not good enough for you."

"Max, if you weren't good enough, then I wouldn't have asked you out in the first place."

"Well, maybe I was good enough back then. But how about now?"

"You still are good enough."

"But I don't feel the same way."

He suddenly turned in my direction, a shocked, sad, grieving, upset, distressed, alarmed look of realization on his face.

"Are you breaking up with me?" He asked. I felt a lump in my throat once I heard how shaky his voice was at that moment.

"Max. Are. You. Breaking. Up. With. Me?" He asked again. I just looked at my shoes, and blinked once, what I hoped Iggy would understand as a universal signal for _yes_. I turned my head at him, and I could see that he did get it, his eyes almost tearing up. This was totally way harder that it seemed.

"Why?"

"I don't belong with you. You deserve better. And I feel like I'd be putting a leash on you if it would stay like this forever."

"Would it?"

"No."

"Then WHY?"

"You'll find out Iggy. You'll find out one day when you're thrice as happy as you are now."

"That'll be the day." He stood up, and walked farther, deeper into the park. "I'll be back in a minute." He said.

But there was something in his voice that said he was never going back. I watched as he got smaller and smaller, until I could barely see him, and stood up to leave on my own.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Iggy<strong>_

We're over. _We're over._

I would love to pinch myself or dunk my head in the nearby fountain, just to make me wake up and realize that I ate too much chocolate in one night. I would definitely want to hit my head hard on one of the thick tree trunks in the forest, but I felt numb.

And just from that feeling, the sensation of being frozen - or was _dead_ a better word? - I knew that this was real. That this was no dream, that Max had just been sitting in front of me minutes ago, telling me that she just wasn't sure if she was good enough for me. That I was probably out of her league. That she somehow knew that I would meet someone better than she was.

But she had all of her facts wrong. _I_ always felt like I wasn't good enough for _her_. _I_ knew from the start that _she_ definitely wasn't the type to dare date someone like me. _I_ always had that part of my brain that always said that someday, this would be over and that she would end up with someone better than I was, though my the rest of my head argued and reasoned until it started to turn pessimistic.

I tried. I asked her out, and she said yes. I was happy, and I was seriously hoping that my newfound relationship would be more than a summer romance. I promised to refuse accepting presents from anyone else for the next sixty years just so she would be the one I'd marry. I gave her all the space she needed, especially whenever she had an uncomfortable look on her face. She was the one who started and ended this. Yet I refuse to believe that it was her fault.

I guess that's just how love works, right?

I didn't even look at her when I stood up and said that I'd be back in a minute. I didn't look back to see if she knew that it was highly unlikely I'd ever return. And even if I did, I doubt that we'd keep on talking. It didn't matter if she walked away now; I walked away, too.

The fact that there were few people in the park consoled me and allowed me to spend the few minutes of silence I really needed. Most of them had probably gone off to spend their last days of freedom at the mall or the carnival or the amusement park and cross off things from their bucket list that they knew couldn't be done while they were at school. Like I did when we went to the beach. I wanted something romantic when I watched the sunset with Max, even if there was less romance when I invited Fang and Tess, just so it wouldn't feel any awkward. I wanted something dreamier, like her leaning on my shoulder or kissing me, and not just a squeeze on the hand and a large grin, similar to the one she gave that time. Was that a sign that she was feeling less about me? Or did she even feel anything about me?

I didn't want to think about that.

It was still quite early in the afternoon. I had the rest of the day and the night to waste, grieving about whatever spark we once had between us. I had enough time to buy a couple of Haagen-Dazs or probably an extra cheesy pepperoni pizza. And I could probably also look for a new DVD just to keep my mind off things. And maybe buy a couple of notebooks and -

My phone rang, snapping me out of my reverie, and I pulled it out to see who was calling. It was Tess.

"Yeah?" I asked, trying to hide my emotions first, even if I knew my hold wouldn't last that long.

"Hey, Ig, I'm at your place. I'm pretty sure I left my copy of _The Chamber of Secrets_ there. Either that, or I accidentally put it in your bag when we were packing up to leave the beach. Do you know where it is?"

My feelings were now flooding out. "I think I saw it somewhere. I'll be there in ten."

"Is everything okay? You sound really weird."

I laughed, but it sounded pretty sarcastic. Bitter and sarcastic. "Well, if you consider Max breaking up with me okay, then yes."

Tess gasped, and then there were a few seconds of silence. "What? Really?"

"I'll be there in ten." I repeated, right before pressing END.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Fang<strong>_

"Where's Iggy?" I asked, walking up to Tess who looked a bit too worried as she sat on the couch.

I've seen Iggy in depressed-mode before. And once I got a message from Tess, saying that he and Max just broke up, I knew that it would happen again. The guy was one not to look at when he wasn't in his usually cheerful and positive mood.

"Upstairs. When he came in, he just went straight into his room and shut the door. No, 'Hi mom' or anything. It's just really scary to see him like that." She replied, and we immediately began to go up to his room. The door was shut, but I knew Iggy was not the type of person to lock doors. I looked at Tess, who nodded, and I opened the door.

"I thought you said it was worse than this." I told her, extending out my arm to emphasize her exaggeration. The room had Iggy's usual style: Exactly half of the room looking like a junkyard and the other half perpetually spotless.

"Well I wasn't talking about the room." She said jutting her chin out in Iggy's direction. He was lying really still, head resting on hands, staring straight at the ceiling. The small desk beside him was occupied by his iPod and a tiny speaker, playing some really sad and slow song.

"He's just like that guy in _The Art of Getting By_." Tess added. "Next thing you know he's going to stay like that for the next two weeks."

"I'll handle this." I said, giving her my "this is a man-to-man moment" look. Even if the last time I gave him a "stop being such a wimp and get out there" talk was that time his grandmother (the one who taught him how to cook like a five-star chef) decided to move to Italy when he was thirteen. Although Tess did get the message and left.

"Yo," I said, sitting on the floor beside Iggy's bed and leaned back on the small desk. There were no signs of consumed Ben & Jerry's or Haagen-Dazs. There were also no traces of bacon, his ultimate comfort food. A sign that he was really depressed in a teenager-with-hormones kind of way and not in the I-have-a-mental-illness kind.

"The worst part was how she let me down _very_ gently," He said in a low voice. "Like she was expecting this."

"Maybe she just knew before that you two weren't really meant for each other." I replied, trying not to say anything about the talk I had with Max at the swings. Except that pretty much everything I was saying to comfort Iggy was almost the same things Max told me.

"But for how long?"

"Maybe after she realized you were too nice for her."

"So she's trying to friend-zone me now?"

"No… I guess… Maybe she's one of the girls who think not having a relationship with anyone will help the world be a better place."

"But she certainly did not help me."

"Elaborate."

"The first breakup always hurts the most."

"First love never dies, but true love can bury it alive."

Iggy looked at me, like he was daring to believe I actually said something romance-quotes worthy, a small sign that he was slowly coming back from the land of the dead and heartbroken. But then he went back to staring at the ceiling.

"Gee, that totally helps." He replied, his voice filled with bitterness and sarcasm.

"Just trying to be a guy helping his best friend stop being such an inconsolable wimp and start cooking stuff and making corny jokes again."

"Very funny." He answered in the same tone as earlier.

"Well what do you want?"

"Do you like her?"

"Iggy, we already talked about that the last time. Great minds think alike, remember?"

"No. I mean, do you think you'd ask her out now that we're not together in real life? Do you like her enough to ask her out?"

"Why would you ask that? I sort of answered that question, too."

"Look, I'm not going to be an idiot and tell you you're not allowed to date my ex because it's the rules of feminism or whatever. If you like her like that, then just say so. I'll be fine with it."

Silence. Would I really tell him less than twenty-four hours after the breakup? Iggy saying shorter statements than mine was usually a sign of a horrible time.

"Maybe in a few months." He added quietly.

"I don't know." I finally replied

But I did know.

"If I did, I'd definitely tell you." I added.

But I'm not sure that if I'll ever get the guts to tell him.

Both of them.

* * *

><p><strong>Part 3 is now officially over.<strong>

**I know I said I'd never do long (for me it is) chapters like these, but I couldn't help myself. This isn't the reason why I missed a week though, since I just decided to take a little rest since (a) Chapter 29 was already done, and (b) School was almost starting again.**

**In the meantime, this is your green light to start answering my questions:**

**1) What do you want to happen in Part 4? SERIOUSLY? (Because even if I have it all planned out, I'm a girl; I might change my mind.)**

**2) What song do you currently like (even though the choices are endless)? It has something to do with a certain prom playlist (though there's no theme yet). If you have a hard time answering that, maybe this'll do better:**

**2) What song is currently your current cause of LSS? (LSS - Last Song Syndrome - the disorder of getting the song you most recently heard getting stuck in your head and playing over and over again.)**

**Review! =D (Please. With a cherry on top. Or if you don't like cherries, any topping of your choice. Like Nutella…)**


	31. In the Middle of the Night Part II

**Disclaimer: I do not own MR.**

* * *

><p>…<p>

It was already ten in the evening, but for him, it was quite early. He wanted to surprise his wife, who always complained of falling asleep all alone while he was busy completing his night shift. He was glad his boss had a change of heart once he had found out it was their anniversary, and he hoped that she would be just as happy once the bouquet of roses met her at the front door.

The girl on the bicycle was no older than twenty, nineteen, perhaps. She was probably from the nearby college, but judging by her work clothes, she was either going to start or had left her shift. Her eyes were alert, and she kept a steady grip on the handlebars.

The road was wide enough for two vehicles that were going opposite directions. He was positioned on the proper lane, while the girl was at the far end of hers. An accident between the two of them would be impossible. There were no pedestrians, and all the people they saw were inside the still-open stores. Surely they would both reach their destination without a single scratch.

But Fate, or possibly Mother Nature, seemed to change her mind.

The two of them made eye contact, the man surprised to see her eyes widen and a scared look take over her face. She let out a shriek, not that loud for the people inside the shops to take notice of, but loud enough for him to hear. He looked straight ahead, and saw the reason of the girl's cry: There was a dog, frozen in the middle of his path, staring straight at the headlights. He quickly swerved towards the sidewalk, and the creature ran in the other direction. He let out a sigh of relief.

That was before the girl let out another shriek, this time loud enough for the people inside to hear. He once again looked in front of him, just in time to see a boy get rammed by his car. He immediately got out of the vehicle, and she swiftly made her way towards the boy.

How could he not have seen him? There were so many streetlights, that it almost looked like it was daytime. He also did not see anyone come out of any of the closest stores. But he did remember focusing on the dog rather than the sidewalk, with the assumption that no one would be walking at this time in the evening.

"Is he okay?" The girl asked. The owner of a nearby diner and few of its patrons began forming a small crowd around the body, though no one dared to touch it. She made her way through the crowd, and he immediately followed.

The boy was around seventeen or eighteen, with a hard but handsome face. He looked fine, for someone who got hit. Nothing seemed broken, or crushed. But blood poured out not unlike sand in an hourglass, only at a slower pace, fortunately.

"Check his pockets." The diner's owner said. "He might have a phone."

He did, and found one in good condition. There was an unread message, but he did not read the name nor the text, and immediately called the sender.

"He doesn't have load." He said, and took out his own cellphone to try and call the number. "I don't have load, either."

"Give it to me, please." The girl said holding out her hand. "I'll try."

He immediately handed the gadget to her, and she took out her own. Someone volunteered to call an ambulance. The spectators began to depart one by one until the only ones left with him were the ambulance caller and the girl, who was still trying to contact someone.

"Is it picking up?" He asked.

"It's ringing." She replied, just before her eyes gave out a hopeful expression and her mouth opened, probably to talk. It was an obvious sign that someone answered. He could hear the tired voice of a girl through the phone's tiny speaker.

"Hello?"

* * *

><p><em><strong>Max<strong>_

No one in their right mind would ever call in the middle of the night. And no one ever answers the phone in the middle of the night, unless they have caller ID. Even then, if the number was unknown, then there would be no way in hell a normal person would still answer it. If the call was made on your phone, there's a chance you might surrender. But if it's on your landline, then it certainly is one way to get a heart attack.

My first thought when the ringing on the phone woke me up: _What is the effing time?_

My thought when I realized that I fell asleep on the couch with a pillow and a blanket: _Why did I sleep here again?_

My thought when I realized it was one in the morning and the phone was still ringing: _I do not remember watching anything related to _The Ring_._

Even though someone with a weird voice was probably going to warn me that I had a week left to live, my mom had somehow found a way to make the ringing really annoying, so that someone would get irritated and answer the phone immediately. I had no choice but to get up and pick up the receiver. Even if it was a girl crying (and not even the ones you hear in the horror movies), it was still spooky on so many levels.

Unknown caller ID? Check. Some girl I don't recognize, crying on the other end? Check. Weird sound coming from somewhere in the house? Check. This was now starting to look like a scene from some lame horror movie. I grabbed my phone and pressed a button so that the screen lit up, serving as my temporary light beam -slash- vampire incinerator.

Finally, the girl stopped crying. "Hello?" She asked. "It's Tess."

"Oh." I replied, wondering why the hell Fang's half-sister was calling me in the middle of the night while crying. We have called each other before, but we've done it on more reasonable hours. "You okay? Why are you crying? Or more importantly, why are you calling me in the middle of the night?"

"I'm sorry. It's just that, I've been calling pretty much everyone I know for the past two and a half hours, and, well, it's super complicated."

The weird sound was now getting nearer and louder. Actually, it wasn't a weird sound anymore. It sounded more like footsteps. I pointed my lit-up screen in various directions, hoping to catch the source.

"Listen." Tess said. "Something happened-"

"Oh _shit_." I accidentally said out loud. Too loud.

"What happened?"

"Nothing." I said, making a face at my mother who was decked out in eye-bags and nightwear, which I should mention is white and flowy. Like the kind ghosts are thought to wear, except that hers was shorter.

"Go to sleep. It's too early to be on the phone." She said right before retreating back to her bed.

"So… where were we?" I asked Tess.

"What's your blood type?"

I'm pretty sure no one ever asks about that at this time in the morning. "AB negative."

There was a pause. "Are you sure?"

No wonder other people didn't answer her. No one likes being questioned about their genes, especially for some undefined cause. "Yes. Now why are you asking about my blood type in the middle of the night? And on what kind of desperate measures are you calling on, anyway?"

"I'm in the hospital, Max. Something happened."

"Whoa. You okay?"

"Pretty much. Can you just please go here now? We really need the blood."

I checked the clock again. "You do know that it's one in the morning, right? And who else do you mean by 'we'?"

"Yes, I am fully aware of the time. I… I don't want to talk about this on the phone. Can you please go now?"

"Yeah." I replied, and Tess gave me the address of the hospital. I hung up, wondering why I just agreed to leaving the house in the middle of the night for no apparent reason. I tiptoed to my mother's bedroom, a part of me hoping that she would somehow approve.

My mom was definitely not a light sleeper, judging by the fact that it had been less than a minute since our last conversation. She was probably not going to forgive me for waking her up again in this hour (even if the first one wasn't on purpose).

"Mom," I whispered, shaking her shoulders gently.

"What is it again?" She asked grumpily.

"I need to go out."

"What? Like a dog?"

"No mom. I need to leave, as in go somewhere. The person on the phone was Tess. It's an emergency, and she needs me to go there."

"Max, do you know what time it is?"

"One-oh-three."

"Do you think I would allow you to get out of the house at this time?"

Well, she wouldn't, but it did feel stupid not escaping instead, like the last time when I went out to the clearing, which brought about certain memories. "No, I guess."

"Then no. Go to sleep."

"Mom…"

"Max, even I won't answer calls from my patients this early. This can wait later, when the rest of our time zone is awake."

I guess I'll have to stick to Plan B: escape.

I looked out the window to see if Gazzy's mountain bike was still chained at the front yard. It was, so I grabbed the keys from the kitchen and went upstairs.

Mom was right. It was too early, and it could wait for at least five hours or so. But I promised Tess I'd go there immediately, and I had a feeling that this was a real emergency. I went back to my room, put on the first clothes I found, which was shorts and a shirt, and threw my jacket on before quickly putting my hair up in a pony tail. There was no time to check for any eye bags or pillow creases. I then grabbed my sneakers and tossed them out the window. Once I made sure I had my phone, keys, and some cash, I opened the window and began to make my way down.

It would've probably been better if I took the bus, since chances were I wasn't awake enough. For now, the bicycle was my fastest way of getting there seeing as I had no idea about bus schedules in the middle of the night. As soon as the road was void of traffic, I took out my phone to check the time. It was almost a quarter to two.

For the time being, I had to focus on getting there on time, whatever the deadline was.

* * *

><p>"Tess?"<p>

The aforementioned person looked up. I may have woken up and rode a bike all the way in the middle of the night/early morning, but with her red eyes, and eye bags, Tess definitely won the "Most Tired Person" Award. And I definitely did not expect the winner of the said award to suddenly stand up and hug me.

"I thought you wouldn't come." She said. "No one was convinced someone would turn up in this hour."

"I had to pull a couple of strings. You're here alone?"

"No. My parents are at the room. They're fine. I just got out to wait for you, in case you came."

"Um, Tess, you're still not telling me-"

At that moment, a doctor approached us. "Ms. Giovanni, this is her?"

She nodded. The doctor then turned to look at me. "You do know you're going to have to donate plenty of blood, right?"

"I guess. But the question is, for whom?"

He looked weirdly at Tess. "Well, Max does need to know. Plus, she needs to check up on him, anyway." She said.

"It's for Iggy?" I guessed.

She shook her head. "It's for Fang."

* * *

><p>"Hello?"<p>

"Hey, mom."

"Maximum! Where on earth are you?"

"I'm at the hospital, because of the emergency I was talking about."

"Then please do enlighten me."

"Fang got in an accident, and he needed blood. I just so happened to have the same blood type as him."

"Why didn't you tell me that earlier?"

"Because I only found out when I got here."

"Well, I'll follow in the morning. Be careful. Bye."

"Bye, mom."

_Click_.

* * *

><p>When the two of us checked up on Fang, he was still a bit unconscious. Four adults, Tess' and Fang's parents, were guarding him, talking about options. The minute I entered, the latter's mother got up and hugged me. The doctor talked about the basic process of blood donation, and I readily agreed. My stomach, although, did not, and I was advised to go to the cafeteria and grab a bite. Tess went with me.<p>

"I'm still not sure if coffee's the best option. But hey, it's way better than soda."

She had been acting all weird and jittery, but it made sense because a) she was also loaded up on caffeine, and b) she was nervous about Fang. Sometimes it felt like she was his girlfriend, since she worried about him a lot, but I would just be reminded that they were siblings.

"Thanks," I said, as Tess handed me my coffee and sandwich. There were few people in the cafeteria, and many of them were nursing their own cups of caffeine. "So do you mind telling me what happened to Fang?"

She explained that he spent the day at Iggy's, who was still in the first stage of the post-breakup. He was making his way back around ten, when a car hit him. The weird part was that he was walking and got hit on the sidewalk. But they learned from a witness that the driver was trying to avoid a dog and had no idea he was there.

"Um, excuse me, Ms. Ride?" A nurse who had approached us asked. "Are you ready for your donation?"

* * *

><p>"How're you feeling?" I asked, pinning my phone between my ear and shoulder as I picked up dirty clothes all over the floor.<p>

"Still feel crappy." He replied, chuckling a bit.

After the not-so-scary episode of getting some blood out of me, I stayed in Fang's hospital room for a bit, talking and cheering Tess up until I fell asleep. Fang was still unconscious the whole time. When I woke up the next morning, my mom and Tess' parents were talking. Fang's parents had gone back to get some things. And apparently, my mom and I were also leaving. Pissed as she was, she was still glad that I helped Fang out. They all said I was a really, really good friend. Like an almost best-friend.

Too bad I wished I'd be so much more than that.

"Are you even allowed to talk on the phone?"

"Eh, don't know. Parents are out, Tess is convincing Iggy to get out of his pod and visit me, and I'm in a hospital room with a phone."

"And out of all the people you chose to call me?"

"All other people whose numbers I know are busy convincing or getting convinced. I'm not interrupting you, am I?"

"No, just doing laundry. Mom made me do it after my little prison escape last night."

"Why?"

I never did tell Tess on how I got there immediately. My mom, on the other hand, was met with praises by Mr. and Mrs. Giovanni before she could chide me for breaking out. "So I could save your life." I said.

"How touching. I am eternally grateful."

"Very funny, Fang."

"No really. Even Iggy has never done something as dramatic and selfless as that."

"Well that's because it's your first time getting hit by a car in the middle of the night."

"True, true. Visit me?" he asked

"I'd love to." I said, trying to add sarcasm, because it would be weird if he actually knew that I actually wanted to visit him and was planning to even without invitation. "I'll go there a little later."

"Stay the night?"

"How demanding. I'll ask my mom."

"And if she won't, can you escape again?"

"Fang!"

"Please?"

"Fine. Bye now."

"Bye."

_Click_.

* * *

><p>"Miss me?" I asked, putting down my overnight bag and sitting beside him on the bed.<p>

He punched me on the shoulder. "Not completely. Tess is downstairs, getting some food."

"Yeah, I bumped into her."

"Did your mom allow you this time, or did you have to make a getaway again?" He teased.

"She allowed me, for your information."

"Ah. You mind giving me details about your escape?"

I did, and he kept laughing during the two and a half minutes it took. "Why didn't you just put on your sneakers first instead of having to throw it out the window and climbing down barefoot?" He asked.

"That was because they have a tendency to squeak whenever I try to get away."

"How about that time you went to the clearing, when it was raining?" He asked, slightly turning pink upon recollection of the "joyful" memories we shared.

"I did the same thing. They got wet, of course."

"Hey." Tess said as she entered the room with food. "He could hardly wait to see you."

Fang made a face. "What the hell?"

"It's true." She said, and turned to me. "He actually kept mentioning that you were going to stay for the night."

"You are going to stay here too, right?" I asked her.

"Of course; wouldn't want the guy to lose control." She replied, and dodged as Fang threw one of his slippers.

"Very funny, Tess." Fang said.

"Anyway," she said. "I have food with me, and it's getting a little late. We should eat."

* * *

><p>"So, did you actually miss me?" I whispered. It was almost midnight, and while Tess was sleeping on the couch provided for visitors, I was sitting on a chair beside Fang's bed. Both of us couldn't sleep, as usual.<p>

"To tell the truth? Sort of."

"When you got hit, you were making your way back from Iggy's, right?"

"Yeah. You wanna know how he is? He actually visited a little right after I called you."

"So, is he still upset?"

"He is. But not as much. He's starting to focus on other things."

"That's good."

"Max?"

"Yeah?"

"Thank You."

"It's cool. I'm pretty sure you would've done the same."

He subconsciously held my hand, and I resisted the urge to point it out and lose contact. "I feel like I can tell you everything."

_Then can you please tell me if you like me or not?_

"Prove it." I said, trying to keep up my Max Ride façade. Now was definitely not a good time to admit my feelings, especially since he was in a hospital bed and his sister was less than ten feet away. "Tell me something you haven't told anyone."

He leaned in closer until our foreheads were almost touching, and the only thing I could see in the dark was his eyes, which were even darker. "I like you a lot. More than you think." He said, and leaned in closer to kiss me. It was slow, but not as passionate as the ones people read in romance novels. But enough to turn me into a mellow freak.

This was too surreal.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Fang<strong>_

It was stupid. Stupid and even more incredibly stupid.

I shouldn't have kissed her.

I could smell her hair; she was that close. The pillow on the bed was pretty large, so I edged it towards her so that she could sleep more comfortably.

She was still holding my hand.

In my usually lame and stupid fashion, I kissed her while I was in a hospital bed with my half-sister less than ten feet away. A very dim-witted move considering that she was my best friend's ex and that I was not supposed to ever tell that.

I could hear her breathing.

I hoped that she forgot. Because if she didn't, everything would be a disaster.

_Everything._

* * *

><p><strong>Ladies and gentlemen, I introduce you to Part 4. Please take note of the following:<strong>

**-Part 4 will be shorter. Eight chapters, if you don't count the epilogue.**

**-There might be drama. No complications, but probably drama that you may or may not be able to relate to (which means you can totally suggest anything which I shall run through my 'idea machine').**

**-It will be weird.**

**So, yeah, sorry for the very dramatic and surreal chapter. I guess I've been watching too many soap operas. Again. Just tell me if you want to change anything, and I'll try my best.**

**Review and tell me what you think =D.**


	32. I Totally Ruined It

**NOTE: Some of you may have noticed that AB- can also receive blood from other blood types, which raises questions. Bear in mind that it was one in the morning and that Max was one of the several people Tess called. Other might've had valid excuses or were not in the mood (as mean as that is).**

**Disclaimer: I don't own MR.**

* * *

><p><em><strong>A week later<strong>_

It still doesn't feel right. It felt so surreal, like Tess never actually called me in the first place. Like the past week was just the result of oversleeping.

That girl was definitely not me. I did challenge people on a daily basis, but that was the only actual time I challenged Fang. Those past dares were just a part of my teasing, another façade I kept. And I definitely wasn't the type to harbor secrets. I knew a lot of things, but those were obtained during those times I'd walk by and suddenly overhear something. I never bugged anyone on who they liked or what their most embarrassing moment was.

I remembered waking up that morning, staring at the top of his unruly black mane, his face calm and relaxed. I recalled that we shared a pillow while Tess took the couch. It could've been the other way around, but Tess needed the comfort judging by the dark circles under her eyes. Everything, from every single conversation topic we had to what time we went to sleep was embedded on my mind. Especially what Fang had told me right before we kissed.

_I like you a lot. More than you think._

Fang definitely liked me as a friend, that much I knew. But then Fang was…_Fang_. He was the most unpredictable -slash- bipolar person I knew. One minute he'd be quiet, and then he'd suddenly tell me a secret in another. First we'd be laughing about random things and I'd be asking about Iggy, and then the next minute would be like _BAM!_ Fang would say something about liking me more than I thought and would kiss me. It was pretty much like that for the past couple of years. And now it confuses me more than ever.

Another thing I noticed after I woke up in the hospital was that the blanket Tess used last night was folded neatly on top of the pillow, a sure sign that she already woke up which I had learned when we went to the beach. And when I thought of the beach, I remembered Fang. Again. We made a pact not to tell Iggy anything. It had felt like we were having an affair, except that it wasn't quite official because Fang couldn't make up his mind about it. And then I remembered Tess, and prayed that she never saw anything happen between the two of us that night.

I'm not saying that Fang's a bit bad when it comes to making decisions or finalizing his statements. If I did hate him for that, then I never would have liked him in the first place. The thing is, would we be actually able to handle each other's moods 24/7? I have my doubts that we'd end up long, another reason why I haven't made a move to tell him. My mind and heart actually screamed the same thing: _Fang_. But there was still that sane part in me, the one that had to think everything through, or what kind of things led to him saying what he said. Jeez, Fang wasn't even dying, and I never thought him to be the kind of guy who says corny things while he's injured.

I haven't told Nudge, Ella, and Angel a thing. Come to think of it, I never do actually tell them that we've kissed, even if it was in one of those romantic scenes like at the beach when it was raining. I've always kept them to myself, and keep telling them pessimistic -slash- realistic things that were actually the same things I kept on thinking. Jeb might as well be out of the question, because even if I'm practically legal, I'd still need his approval and whatnot.

The sane part of my brain also brought up one of the many questions I had asked myself during the beginning of summer: What were we actually going to do if I ever said yes? I know for a fact Fang's not a romantic, Tess isn't focused on love, and Iggy's still heartbroken. We'd probably still be doing the same stuff we did, except that whenever he kissed me, he wouldn't say sorry anymore. Maybe he still would, but I'm hoping that the lame apologies would stop, if that isn't too demanding.

The conversation the morning after that would always be the most replayed thing on my mind. Next to the confession, at least.

_Tess had left a note that she was getting breakfast. After making sure Fang was still asleep, I tried my best to lift my head off the pillow without disturbing him too much, since his head was pretty close. I then continued watching Fang from the couch. Half of my mind wondered if it was real or a dream, while the other half wondered if Fang was thinking the same thing, in the case that it actually happened._

_The first thing he saw when he woke up was me. He blinked, and then suddenly got up, making his hair messier than before._

"_Did that actually happen?" He asked._

_So it _was_ real. "Well, I thought I was dreaming, too. But since you asked that…"_

_He froze, and then spontaneously landed back on his pillow. He then proceeded to cover his face with both hands and say a few choice words. That was probably either because he actually thought it was just an illusion, too, or maybe he thought I was someone else. I'd prefer the neither any other day._

"_Is it me, or are the forces of the universe acting particularly weird upon us today?" I asked, trying (too hard) to bring the conversation to a casual tone._

_He didn't answer and instead added a few more words to his list, a couple I've never even heard before. And I thought _I_ was the sailor during our past lives._

"_It really did happen, didn't it?" He said, not making any move to take his hands off his face._

"_What really did happen?" Tess asked as she entered the room, holding trays of food. When Fang didn't answer, she turned to me._

"_What is he talking about?"_

* * *

><p>Another thought that resurfaced after we kissed was Iggy. It pretty much reminded me of all the stuff Fang and I hid from him, both before and during the relationship. I'd have to use all ten fingers, probably even my toes, to count how many things we haven't told him.<p>

That memory was made stronger when Iggy visited Fang the same morning.

I was about to leave then. He entered and greeted the three of us, but when it came to say hi to me, it seemed forced and had a heartbroken ring to it. It was a huge difference, considering that Iggy was quite upbeat when he entered and had a huge grin on his face. When he saw me, his smile grew smaller and was sadder. We hadn't actually had a single conversation ever since he walked out on me and I left when we broke up, so we didn't know if we were still supposed to be friends or something.

And if we still stayed friends, he would still have to live with the fact that I broke his heart. So, no, I guess that was not really an option. I quickly declared that I was going, and left the room without making eye contact with either boy.

I knew I couldn't stay away from Iggy forever, and he knew that he couldn't avoid me, either. We'd have to settle on an agreement one day or another. That afternoon, he found me sitting near the edge of a park's fountain. Fortunately, it was an insignificant park with no memories to make me feel anything.

"What're you doing here?" He asked, sitting next to me and turning so that we faced each other.

"Gazzy's trying out one of those bombs you taught him. Had to stay away from the damage." Gazzy became Iggy's companion the summer we dated. I had sometimes joked that my brother was spending more time with him than I was, and we'd just laugh. "I have to admit, he misses you. You should drop by sometime. He always keeps on saying something about being with a friend that had the same mind as him."

"Well, about that…"

I blushed a little. Of course my brother was on good terms with him, but it was probably not motivational enough for him to be under the same roof as me.

Iggy went on. "Well, yeah, I'd rather that we don't see other, but then we go to same school and might as well share classes. So I guess I wouldn't want that?"

"Wouldn't want what?"

"I wouldn't want not seeing you. You're a really cool girl, a really great friend, and I wouldn't want to loose that just because we dated and broke up. It just makes me feel even more special because I was good enough to date you."

It was weird hearing him say that. He made it sound like that was the one who chose to break up, and not me. It made me feel bad, seeing as he was so nice that he still wanted to stay friends with me, or whatever he had meant to say.

"Well, what do you mean by that?"

"I mean that I still want to be friends with you. If it's okay with you."

"It's totally okay with me. I mean, I wouldn't want to loose contact with you, either."

He had a goofy grin on his face, but then the silence started and he started to look serious.

"You know I could've done the same thing you did. By that, I mean giving Fang some of your blood."

"I'm sure you could've done that. You're Fang's best friend; it's not your fault your blood type's different."

"Yeah, my blood type is different, but I'm A negative. I could've donated to Fang if I wanted to."

If he wanted to? "Well, you must've been asleep when Tess called; you were probably tired, anyway."

"But I wasn't tired. I was wide awake, and I answered my phone when she called. She wasn't that jumpy yet, so she told me everything. It took long, about five minutes or so. Then she asked me if I could donate. I said I didn't feel like going out and hung up."

Silence again. I couldn't exactly say anything to comfort him, since he would deny it.

"You're not gonna judge me?" He asked.

"I can't, because if I was in you situation, then I would've said the same thing to her, too."

He grinned. "Thanks. That made me feel good." Then, he added, "So I heard Tess called you on your house phone?"

"Yep. Gave me the worst heart attack. Not literally of course. Anyway, she explained she couldn't remember my number and she didn't bring her cellphone with her since she was in a hurry, and she hadn't bothered looking at Fang's. So she had to search the phonebook."

"I have to say, that sure is a story worth telling."

"Yeah. The tale of how I thought I had a week left to live."

"Very funny."

We continued to make small talk, and soon we both had to go. He walked me to one of the park's entrances and we started to say our goodbyes for the day.

"Max, we will still be friends, right?"

I smiled. "Of course we will. Of course I want to be friends with you."

"I'll see you around?" He asked, taking a few steps to the general direction of his house without turning his back on me.

"Yeah." I said and waved. He turned and started walking home, and I did the same in the other direction.

I had a decision to make. A lose-lose problem, like back when Iggy asked me out. There was no escaping this one, either. And even if I could avoid it for long, it was one that I didn't want to stay away from. It was probably the one moment my love life waited for since forever.

And yet I couldn't deny the thought that I was going to mess it all up.

* * *

><p>The day after that, I went back to the hospital for two reasons. One was because Tess begged for company, since Fang's parents were busy again. The second one was that no matter what I did or what other topic I thought of, Fang's voice would once again pop up in the back of my mind. I'd have to face the music sooner or later.<p>

"Really, Max. Thanks for going with me." Tess said as we entered the hospital. She kept on assuring me that I didn't need to be there the whole day, since I probably had other things to do. But talking to Fang was pretty much the only thing on my checklist, and that required being cooped up in the hospital all day, or at least until Fang and I had a few minutes alone with Tess out of earshot. And even if I didn't get the chance, nothing would change since he was going to be out in a day or two and we'd have more than few of our share of moments with no one else tagging along.

So even if the sane part of me wanted to do this later, I still couldn't handle it anymore, and had to just jump in.

Fang didn't look so much like a hospital patient anymore. He had insisted on dumping those weird hospital gowns everyone seemed to wear and opted for his regular clothes. He sat on the chair nearest to his bed, which was neatly made, and was playing a game on his phone when we entered. He smiled upon seeing Tess, but it got smaller and his cheeks flushed a bit when I followed.

"Wanted some other company," Tess said, putting down her bag. "I hope you don't mind?"

"I don't. But do mom and dad know that I can actually spend a day on my own?" He asked.

"Tell that to them." She replied, slouching into the seat beside him. I, in the meanwhile, sat down on the couch on the opposite end of the room and checked my phone for messages. There was one from Nudge.

_Where are you? Don't tell me you're with Fang again._

Well, so to speak, I was actually accompanying Tess, who was accompanying Fang. So that didn't actually mean that I was with Fang, right? Or did that have something to do with the transitive property, which meant I _was_ with Fang?

"Um, Max?" Tess asked. I looked up from my phone. She was already halfway down the room, her hand level with the doorknob. "I'm just going out to get some stuff, 'kay?"

I nodded and she went out, closing the door behind her.

So now it was just the two of us.

"Do you wanna talk?" He asked.

"What are we going to talk about?"

"You already know." He replied, still fixing his gaze on the floor.

Of course. He probably also knew that I was going to bring it up if he didn't.

"So… a recap, I guess."

He took a deep breath. "I got hit. You got called. You came. I got better. We talked. You stayed for the night. I told you I like you. We kissed."

It was weird how straightforward he was this time, but the tone of his voice didn't suggest that he was fully confident on how I was going to answer.

"Yeah that. So I guess the question is, if I like you or not, right?" I asked.

"Something like that."

_That_ was the million dollar question. Actually, it was worth more than a million. Him sort of asking me out reminded me of when Iggy asked me out. Really, there were no huge differences between the two, since I've only learned one lesson about boys: never lead them on. So if I still knew nothing about serious relationships and decided to jump in one with Fang, would that mean I was leading him on?

I looked at him. His hair partially blocked his face, since his head was bent at a direction not meant to direct focus on me.

"It's just that…" I started.

No reply. Still not looking at me. It made me wonder which one of us was going to feel worse after the rejection.

"It's just that, it's been at least a week or two since Ig and I broke up. I don't think this is going to be good for the three of us. You know, three-month rule and all."

He nodded, but I knew that he knew that the explanation wasn't over yet.

"And, well, I don't think I'm that prepared to jump into anything else right now."

I was totally ruining this.

"So, you're saying you want to be friends?" He asked. His head was now raised, staring at the wall behind me.

I was totally ruining this.

I swallowed. "Yeah."

I was totally ruining this.

"Oh. Okay." He replied, his expression gloomier.

I was totally ruining this.

He thought he was defeated. But he only heard the reason why I didn't want to go out with him _now_.

I never did tell him that I liked him. Loved him, even.

I totally ruined this.

* * *

><p><strong>I know, WHY DID MAX HAVE TO RUIN IT? (As if I wasn't the one writing this.) For anyone who might be confused, the chapter is Max's narrative on what happened "a week ago".<strong>

**I probably would have made this with them confessing to each other already, but (1) it's not ready to end yet… they still have prom, and (2) confessing while the other had a not-much-fatal-accident-and-not-really-in-critical-condition would STILL sound cliché. Get my point there?**

**By the way guys, you mind doing a favor? My sister writes (most of the time even better than me), but she never puts it up on sites like FictionPress. I may be delusional over here, but I think it would be cool if a random stranger (for her) gives her a compliment about her stories (because everyone gets flattered by that. Like me, for example). Here is a link to one of the short stories she made: yourdailytinapay(dot)blogspot(dot)com / 2011 / 10 / sometimes-it-lasts-in-love-but(dot)html . You can either leave a comment (you should probably mention that I sent you there, so she won't get creeped out) or just put in your review and I'll show it to her.**

**Hope that's not too much to ask.**

**See you in a week (or two)! =D**


	33. One Final Plan: Fang

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own MR.**

* * *

><p><em><strong>Fang<strong>_

In every romantic comedy, or any other romantic movie for that matter, there will always be a part where the guy and the girl have an awkward moment or fight with each other and then just end up ignoring each other for weeks or months, like what happened before that meant nothing. It was just like that between Max and I. Only longer.

Because it's been almost a year.

It's a literal time skip from August to May. If that is not a long time, then I care to be enlightened.

I ruined everything. And by everything, I mean _everything_.

Well, yes, I did actually still see her on a daily basis. We had the same homeroom, though I always sat at the far end almost at the back, while she took a window seat somewhere in the middle of the rows. We had different classes, and even if we had the same homework, we never asked each other. Sometimes Tess and Iggy (who seems to be getting over it) invite her and her friends to sit with us. But we'd be caught up talking to someone else, and the noise on top of it all never really allowed for an actual honest conversation.

I missed her.

There were some times that we'd suddenly bump into each other and have a short conversation. That didn't matter so much, since it was always a greeting, followed by a how are you, and ended with an I guess I'll see you on Monday, or whatever day school was going to be on again. Pretty much the same conversation we rarely have when we're at school

I haven't seen her in the clearing for a long time.

While it feels, weird, it just basically reminds me of those times during freshman year, when we were just two people on the first-name basis. But those times then were less complicated. We still told each other random stuff from our lives. We still laughed at each others jokes, and stick our tongues out at each other's insults. Those times were before we kissed, before Iggy asked her out, before I told her how I feel.

I'm not back at square one. Square one started when we were already close. This was square negative-something.

I rarely hear her insults. I haven't heard her sing in what feels like a million years, even if it's just those corny commercial jingles.

But I wish I could go back to square one, so that I could start again and that I could just admit it to her right away, no confusion, no impulse kisses, no secret deals. No heartbreaks, no accidents, no complications, no awkwardness.

And those are exactly the things I never can and never will predict.

I know it's going to end here. After graduation there is a humungous chance that this will be forgotten, that this will be one of those parts of high school that brings out those amazing life lessons that you never knew you needed to learn, and then we'll probably just smile at each other and say our goodbyes and go to college. Then we'll come back all old and mature, and maybe I would call her up for some coffee and catching up, in the case we still had contact. And then we'll go back to the times like these and we'll just laugh about it and say something about how we've really grown up.

I don't want it to be like that. I want it to be us together at graduation, us bonding over during college, us going back together and sharing crazy stories with our friends. I want to tell her that I love her and I want to be with her even if it turns me into a lovesick wimp that tries to make everything work for that someone.

But I can't. I just can't.

* * *

><p>"Hey, Fang," Tess called out, running down the stairs two at a time. "Let's play a game."<p>

I looked up from the college brochures scattered over the kitchen table. Tess of course, couldn't care less about other choices, since she got into her first choice, which was also parent-approved.

"What game?" I asked. Iggy entered the kitchen, and I gave him a look asking if he knew anything about this. He shook his head.

"I call it 'Truth or Truth'."

"You're kidding, right?"

"No Fang, it's called 'Truth or Truth'. It goes like this: I ask you a question, and you either answer honestly or I give you a long speech convincing -slash- forcing you to answer honestly."

"How original."

She gave me her sweetest, most-convincing smile and sat down across me, swiping the brochures aside. Iggy leaned against the counter and raised an eyebrow at Tess.

"You up for the first question?"

I nodded, shifting my focus to the latest brochure I was reading. Tess quickly took it out of my hands and gathered the rest of brochures near her.

"You know I was reading that."

"You know you're doing something else than looking for another school when you already got accepted to several others."

"Fine. What's the first question?"

"No skipping, dodging, avoiding, or neutral answers. It's as simple as a yes and no."

"Yeah, sure. Go ahead and shoot."

This time it was Tess' turn to raise an eyebrow at Iggy. He merely shrugged in reply.

"Okay." She said, putting both palms on the table. "First question: Do you like Max, or do you like Max?"

"You do know that there's only one choice."

"I never said you had to choose. I just said that you had to answer 'yes' or 'no'."

"Is 'or' one of those options?"

"Very funny."

It took two minutes of silence for me to think if this was a prank or if they really had sensed that I had feelings for the aforementioned person.

"Remember," Tess reminded me. "No skipping, no dodging, no avoiding, and no neutral answers."

I looked at Iggy for a little help. He shrugged again, and I remembered that he had no idea about the truth.

"Don't you already know the answer to that one?"

She nodded slowly, and then stood up. "The answer's 'yes', isn't it?"

"Tess, what I meant by that was that you know that we're just friends."

"That's what you say."

"Care to enlighten me?"

Iggy, who somehow had a look of interest on his face (but not the type involved with anger or jealousy or whatever someone felt when they find out that their best friend likes their ex), sat down on the chair between Tess and I. "Exhibit A: you and Max spent more than half of the senior year not acknowledging each other. You guys usually hang out as often as we do."

Tess sat back down, this time with poise like an attorney's. "Exhibit B: you have been more silent, with or without Max. Emphasize on the 'with'."

"I'm stressed," I tried to reason out. "Yeah, I am sorry that I only seem to hang out with the two of you, but there's a lot on my mind, okay?"

"There's still something else." Iggy replied.

"Exhibit C," Tess answered, this time in a lower voice, even though the three of us knew that my parents weren't here. "I've seen you guys kiss."

That made me hold my breath and pray that it had nothing to do with the beach or the clearing or _Aladdin_. "Repeat that."

"When you got in the accident, and Max stayed for the night." You were talking in the middle of the night, while I was sleeping. There was one point I sort of woke up just in time to hear you say that you liked her and then you kissed her."

"So…"

This time it was Iggy who spoke up. "So it means that she rejected you." He said, fortunately without any sign of arrogance.

"So Fang, answer the question. Yes or yes?"

"Fine. Yes."

"I knew it!" The two of them said at the same time and exchanged high-fives.

"You knew?" I asked Iggy. Hopefully, he knew the parts _after_ the breakup.

"Am I or am I not your best friend?"

"Unfortunately, you have a point there. So what are you guys going to do about it, anyway?"

"We're getting you guys together."

"Well I'm sure she wouldn't like that. I'm going to Tennessee, remember?" I said, holding up an acceptance letter in my hand as proof.

"Who says she's not leaving, too?" Iggy asked. Of course, as her ex, he knew a lot of things about Max.

"This is probably going to be a suicide mission, right?"

"But it's worth a shot."

* * *

><p>"When did you start liking Max?"<p>

As a "favor", I was now in Tess' room, sitting on her desk chair while she was on the floor near her bed, a pen and notebook in hand. According to her, she was doing an investigation of sorts to find the perfect way on how to confess and get Max.

"How is that going to help?"

"So I know if this is one of the impulse things you have, or if you really are in love with her."

"That story would take several seasons."

"I don't care if it takes seven books or four seasons and a movie. I will still be squealing at the cuteness of it afterwards."

And that's how I ended up telling Tess everything. And by everything, I literally mean _everything_. Well, not really since I left out some of the parts that indicated that Max might've "cheated" on Iggy, plus the other embarrassing ones. But, yeah, everything, right down from freshman year until the last time we had a serious talk, which was almost a year ago.

"Let me get a recap." She said. I cringed at the thought, since the last time I recapped with someone else, that someone else had practically dumped me.

"So you told her you liked her."

"Yeah."

"And then you kissed her."

"Yes."

"And then you guys had a serious talk."

"Go on…"

"And then she practically dumped you…"

"Something like that."

"And you never made another move?"

"I never did."

Tess instantly dropped her pen and had her palm connect with her face. The usual indicator that you did something wrong. After muttering a few choice words, she looked up at me with a half-pissed expression.

"Why the heck did you do that?"

"Do what?"

"Not make a move."

"Because she didn't feel comfortable about it."

"Well, yeah, sure, it would've been just as weird and creepy as a vampire watching a teenage girl sleep, but you two are different. Because, one, you're not dead, and two, she likes you enough to not think that you're stalking her."

"Says who?"

"Says you telling the story. Think about it, there would be no chain reaction, no complications, if she didn't like you. But she did, and she shot back. If she didn't, then the worst would've been _Aladdin_."

"You amazingly have a point there, but no, I still do not believe in that nor will I follow your lead on getting us together."

"Who says that's going to happen? Either you follow my lead, or I will give you another long speech convincing -slash- forcing you to follow my lead."

"Well, if what you said is true, how are you sure that Max still likes me after what happened?"

"No ifs. I'm very sure about this."

"So what makes you say she still likes me?"

"Easy, she feels just as awkward as you are."

"You, once again, have a point there. But that does not necessarily mean that I will all of a sudden start buying red roses and sing love songs while she's up in her balcony."

"That can be arranged. You can buy another flower, and you'll just sing right in front of her. I'm sure she doesn't have a balcony, anyway."

"So what else am I supposed to do that does not have anything involving flowers and love songs?"

"You'll see," She replied, a smile beginning to form on her face. "I have more ideas than you think."

* * *

><p>"And that is why I believe that my half-sister is a true psycho when it comes to matchmaking."<p>

"Hard to believe that." Iggy replied. "If she's that great, then I should've asked her las time."

Oh, right. Iggy equals Max's ex. All year that was the only thing that was constantly in the back of my mind, since it was the voice of reason Max used when we had that serious talk . They did occasionally sit beside each other during lunch, but the two of them were less awkward. Plus, they talked more often.

"Iggy, serious bro talk over here."

"I'm listening."

"You _are_ over Max, right?"

He sighed. "Let's do a recap shall we?" Without waiting for me to reply, he started counting off his fingers. "How long has it been since we broke up? Nine freaking months. How many times do we have conversations in a day? At least five, which is way more than yours. How many girls have I flirted with since the breakup? At least ten. So yes, that means I AM over her."

"It's just that… Well, even if I know that not dating your best friend's ex is in the rules of feminism, isn't that in the bro code, with the exception if she wasn't a scumbag and you were the one who dumped her?"

"Well, you know Max wasn't a scumbag. And even if we were practically adults then, that didn't mean she already wanted a relationship right?"

"Something like that."

"Actually, the question is, did she not want a relationship? Or did she not want a relationship _with me_?"

"You do know that you're pretty much implying that she was with you because she was desperate to be with someone?" I asked, hoping that he knew nothing about the kiss.

"I'm pretty sure that isn't true," He said, and shrugged. "But then you'll never know."

"So what am I supposed to do now? There are no chances of me not getting involved in this."

"You'll just pretty much have to let her, or maybe the two of us, come up with a Fang-proof plan. Or maybe not a Fang-proof one. Either way, you're gonna have to do it."

"Do your plan or be with Max?"

"Isn't that the same thing?"

"Yeah, sure. Any pep talk advice?"

"Are you serious?"

"Probably."

"Okay. One thing, dude: Do not mess this up. I repeat, do not mess this up."

* * *

><p>After those two pep talks -slash- investigations, Tess called up for a "meeting", where, according to her, the different courses of actions would be announced.<p>

As if I was going to follow their crazy plans. Well, maybe I would, but that didn't automatically mean I was going to follow all the steps.

I entered the dining room the last, interrupting Iggy and Tess in heated conversation on whether I was supposed to put her name in a song if such situation happened. I took a seat beside Iggy and made a coughing sound, getting their attention. Tess stood up and went to the kitchen, coming back with a flip chart.

"Why the heck did you make an organizational chart for this?"

"Because my brother's so lonely and single and unorganized."

"Hey, not entirely true."

"Face it Fang," Iggy said. "You pretty much turned into a very wimpy and lovesick young man."

"Okay, fine. Can we just get on with it now?"

Tess smiled. "Glad you asked." She said and flipped the cover, displaying a page with the heading OPERATION: MAXIMUM RIDE and a poorly drawn sketch of the said person with her information on the side.

"So, as your bestfriend -slash- almost lover, I'm sure you know a lot of things about Max. The rest of the details were provided by Iggy. That means that you know what and what not to do."

"So that pretty much means that this'll be easier." I said.

"That is what you think." Iggy said, standing up and standing on the other side of the flip chart. "There is the extremely hard part."

"Which is?"

"Getting you to man-up and tell her how you feel."

Oh, right, that. I had to admit, these two made incredibly good points. But not quite encouraging.

"And now, without further ado," Tess said, flipping it to the next page. "Plan A."

"And if that won't work?"

"There are twenty-five other letters. Hopefully, we don't need to use all of them."

* * *

><p><strong>Okay, so not actually what I aimed for, which is 3K. But it is long enough, right? RIGHT?<strong>

**So… I miraculously updated in a week. (I secretly wanted to wait if two more reviews would come, but I'll be incredibly busy since it's almost the summer, and I couldn't resist updating.) By the way, my sister thanks MPHknows and JealousMindsThinkAlike for the comments.**

**So, a review, hopefully? Let's see if this'll hit 462.**

**See you in a week (or two)! =D**


	34. One Final Plan: Max

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own MR.**

* * *

><p><em><strong>Max<strong>_

A list of things I'm not really supposed to do (according to Nudge) but did anyway:

1) Waited for Fang to call, even if my Mom or the Gasman was still using the phone.

2) Repeatedly looked at my phone, in the hopes that he would text.

3) Stared at my email inbox all day, refreshing every five minutes to see if Fang sent an email.

4) Stared at him with my peripheral vision, which was hard because he usually sat at the back during homeroom (the only one we had together).

5) Tried to come up with excuses to talk to him, like not knowing homework in a class where we had the same teacher.

I'm pretty sure there are a lot more than what I've mentioned. But I wouldn't want to bore or put anyone to sleep.

It's not that I actually told them everything. Not yet. But according to this book Nudge reads, you can't always chase after a boy, because when you chase something, the chances of that thing running away gets higher. So according to the girl universe, I cannot act like a cat going after a mouse. Or a little kid going after a ball. Or a fan girl running after a fictional character that never existed. Well, the third one might be an exception, but that's not what I'm trying to say here.

It feels so weird that I haven't been having a real conversation with Fang in almost a year. Back then, even if I was the girl who always wanted to be with him (in a non-dramatic way), I liked being close friends with him. No, that did not mean I appreciated being friend zoned. I just really wanted to know him more before having a future relationship with him.

And now it's obvious that it's never going to happen.

I can just imagine the girls' faces if I ever told them about the hospital incident. I'm pretty sure it would go like this:

"_Max, Max, Max." Nudge said. "Three years is too freaking long."_

"_Tell that to the Department of Education. They gave us four."_

"_Nice attempt at humor, but that's not what I'm talking about. I'm talking about you liking Fang for too long and not attempting to make conversation with him and then suddenly switching the topic just to tell him that you like him."_

"_What she said." Ella chimed in._

"_Max, you do know that I can now describe you with adjectives that you never ever wanted to be used on you?" Angel asked._

"_Then please care to enlighten me and tell me what those adjectives are."_

"_Single, desperate, shy, stalker-ish, and in love. Wait, did I mention desperate?"_

"_No, Angel. I am perfectly fine with being described as single. And yes, you did say desperate, which, by the way I am not. I like Fang, but I haven't been constructing crazy plans to get us together, have I?"_

"_No, you probably aren't desperate, but you look like it." Nudge said._

"_Why don't you make a move now?" Ella asked. "I mean, looking at the way he looks at you, or how much he talks just to tell you random stuff, it's obvious he likes you."_

"_Oh he does," I said nonchalantly. "He told me."_

_Three pairs of eyes widened in surprised. "What did you tell him?" Angel asked._

"_That I wasn't ready, and stuff about the three month rule."_

_And then came three, three- quarters pissed looks._

Actually, I have something funny and weird to say about that.

It actually happened. The only difference was that it was longer. That was just the beginning and the end. I cut out the middle because there were too many made- to- convince speeches about getting up and telling Fang I love him and kissing him right then and there (that one was Nudge's idea which I refused, of course).

So, yes they were pissed. Then they started talking about plans on what I should do to get his attention or whatever I had to do to build up to me telling him how I really felt.

The thing was, I actually kind of not- refused. Because, I admit that I regret what I did, and I also admit that I am desperate enough to do anything to erase it from both Fang's and my memories. Because I liked him, and yes, my waiting period has been too long. It was almost the end of our last year together, and no way am I messing it up by leaving for college without saying a word to him.

So for the first time, instead of going with the flow, I was actually swimming against the current.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Three Days Later<strong>_

When there's a problem, there will always be a plan. And when a plan is needed, Nudge is always the first person to come up with one, as ridiculous and unrealistic as it may be.

I watched as Nudge took a swig of Redbull and sighed with the satisfaction of having a sugar rush start inside her. She did over talk whenever she had a dose of caffeine, but it usually gets unbearable after the fifth can. Plus, it was really late at night, and she was sleeping at my place since we were partners on a project pulling an all- nighter.

"So, about Fang…" she started.

"No, Nudge." I replied. "Not now. We are partners pulling an all- nighter because our darn teacher in Statistics wants us to make a thesis. We are NOT pulling an all- nighter because we need to talk about what I need to do about the mystery which is my relationship status concerning Fang."

"But you have to admit, it would be better than doing this." She said, motioning to sheets of paper scattered all over the floor which contained rows and rows of numbers. Nudge was right about that since both of us had repeated several calculations and our brains were ready to blow up.

"Okay, you have a point. But it's only _slightly _better than this." I said, and set my thumb and index finger apart a teeny bit, the gap between them not seen afar.

Nudge stood up and straightened her posture, so that she looked like a professional. "Sit there." She said, pointing to my desk chair. I sat down and she started pacing.

"So, as I recall you saying three days ago, you had spent the night in the hospital with Tess and Fang."

"Yes."

"And you were talking quietly while Tess was asleep."

"Yes."

"And you dared him to tell you a secret."

"Yes."

"And then he told you he liked you."

"Yes."

"And then he kissed you."

"Yes."

"And then after that the two of you talked and you decided to ignore him the rest of the year."

"Yes, but I didn't.. It was… Okay, fine. I 'decided to ignore him the rest of the year'."

"He told you he liked you?"

"Yes."

"I ask again, He told you he liked you?"

"Yes." I said, a tiny bit of irritation in my voice.

"He said you-"

"Yes, he said he liked me. Why are you making such a huge deal out of it."

"Thank you, I was expecting that question."

"So why is it such a huge deal?"

"That's like God proving to you that unicorns are real by giving you one. But instead, you'll be saying, 'Gee, not thanks. I'd rather have that brownie that'll last about ten seconds instead."

"How is the brownie related to this?"

"Fang said he liked you. God wanted to give you a unicorn. Then he kissed you, and he meant it. By 'he', I mean Fang. You traded a good offer that was going to last for a sucky, short term investment."

"And by that, you mean…"

"Wouldn't you want to hold his hand and kiss him whenever you want? Or would you rather kiss him for, like, ten seconds and ignore him for the rest of the year and act like nothing happened?"

"Okay, okay, I see your point there, but…"

"But what? The three-month dating rule? You could've just told him to wait a bit."

"But if he didn't? What if in those three months, something happened -not just to him, but to me, too- that would change everything?"

"So you're saying you have doubts?"

"No, it's just that…"

"Believe it or not, I'm pretty sure he started liking you sophomore year. The way he looked at you, and how it seemed like he always glanced at you, especially during _Aladdin_… It's a pretty long time. The two of you have been holding back from each other for so long that it's driving everyone crazy."

"I'm sure we are. But Nudge, we're the two most awkward people in the world. I have only told him four sentences for the past year: 'Hi'; 'How are you'; 'I'm doing pretty good'; and 'I'll see you Monday'. How are you sure that we can possibly fix this in less than a month?"

"There you are again Max, being pessimistic -slash- realistic. Don't worry; I always have a plan. I'll just run them by Ella and Angel first."

* * *

><p>The first thing that Angel did when we met up to discuss Nudge's plans was hug me and make fake sniffing noises.<p>

Seriously, after being friends with her for a very long time, I will still never understand that girl.

"Aw, look at you Maxie," she cooed, which by the way is _gross_, "you're all grown up. You won't need my help anymore; the vibes has already put itself to good use supplying you with all the information you needed. Now, it's your choice to decide on how you want it to be."

"You have to admit," Ella said as soon as Angel released me, "that it was a bit cute behind all the creepiness."

"Well, yeah, something like that." I replied, and we made our way to Auntie Marie's, the same coffee shop where I first saw Fang with my friends around. A tiny part of me hoped that he would walk by while we sat in our usual window booth. The rest of me hoped that he would not, seeing that Angel and Ella were going to discuss Nudge's possibly horrific and ridiculous plans.

"So, that's pretty much it?" I asked, eyeing the thick manila envelope the two brought. I somehow felt like a gangster or mafia or whatever those guys were who made shady deals in wide open public spaces.

"According to Nudge, there might be a couple more." Ella replied.

"Oh joy," I said, reaching out for the envelope and pulling out its contents. Several Redbull-stained sheets of paper were covered with Nudge's handwriting. A couple of diagrams (aka possible outfit combinations) were drawn and colored, and the rest were in words, with something hi- lighted every paragraph or so.

"If I'm not mistaken, Nudge put that in order on which plan is easiest, outfits and all." Angel added.

I grabbed the sheet of paper on top. On it was a hastily drawn outfit consisting of my everyday wardrobe: sneakers, jeans, and a shirt or some hoodie. The only difference was that they were in blinding shades of girly colors. Overall, the ensemble was suspiciously comfortable. I looked at the heading and realized why.

"You do know that this first one is the hardest, right?"

Ella took the paper and run a finger through it. "Well, it's not that complicated. It's pretty basic, but, yeah, it is sort of hard, considering the situation between you two.

"Yep. And therefore, I have concluded that there is no way in hell am I going to doing this."

"Do we have to give you more speeches again?" Angel asked.

"Well, you can try, but this is the real world, and in the real world, there is no way this is going to happen. Ever."

"But it's _easy_." Ella said in a sing- song voice as she held the paper up. "Don't you like easy?"

"Geez, Ella, put that down." I replied, snatching the paper. "What if Fang just so happened to walk by and see _this_?"

"Then you'll get the chance to talk, and then you'll get to change the topic and finally tell him everything. Happily ever after."

"Or maybe he'll get creeped out and never talk to you again." Angel chimed in. "But that's just hypothetical."

"And that is what I'm talking about."

"Oh come on, his name isn't even mentioned here. But on second thought, he might think that you're actually making an attempt at rating outfits, and that might be weird." Ella replied.

"Exactly what I was thinking." I said. "So I'll just get the next plan-"

"And rant about how ridiculous it is and question no one on how the hell Nudge came up with it." Angel finished.

"Well, that's a possibility. And it is sort of a routine."

"But then in the end, you'll do it anyway and even if it does not go exactly as planned, it does yield better results than the ones you have in mind." She added. Though not exactly true, some of Nudge's crazy ideas were totally worth it. Like auditioning for Glee club. Even if I didn't get in, Lissa's face was the best thing my knuckles destroyed.

"Let's just put that at the bottom of the stack, shall we?" I asked, already slipping it at the bottom before they could say anything.

They both shrugged. "If you say so," Ella said.

"But you do recall the farther it gets to, the more ridiculous it is?" Angel asked

"Yes, I do recall that. But I just can't do it. It's too… Impossible."

* * *

><p>"Ah, senior year." Dad said, and yes, it was once again during one of our several Skype calls. "You do realize that the moment of truth -whether you'll be spending college here or not- is getting nearer and nearer."<p>

"Yes, it is. And I swear that I _am_ studying."

"So, what about Fang? I'm pretty sure he has no plans of going to Paris to pursue his career in…"

"From what I've heard, he's planning to major in either Music or English, so his chances of going to Paris are zero."

"Well, where is he planning to go?"

"No idea, hasn't told me yet."

"Let me guess, another awkward phase?"

"Yes."

"That means he likes you."

"Great. First Nudge, then Angel and Ella, and now you?"

"Give me some credit, I'm a guy. If you ask your mom, she'll tell you we had a lot of awkward phases, too. But we did get married, and we did have two children, didn't we?"

"Okay, okay, I get your point. But that was like, almost three decades ago. But this is the twenty- first century, Dad. Things are more complicated now."

"You just wait; there will be a lot of very unexpected events concerning the two of you that will come. And I am willing to bet that they will be happening before the two of you part ways for college. The soonest will probably be on your graduation."

"Sure, sure, I will."

"Speaking of, did you get the finals care package I sent you?"

"Yes, I did."

"Including the box with the combination lock?"

"Yup. Plus the letter about telling me to wait for you to give me the combo. What's in it, anyway?"

"You'll find out in a minute. Go get it, and I'll tell you how to open it."

I went across the room and got the box, which was resting at the bottom of the piles of candies, energy drinks, and jars of Nutella.

"This is it, the moment of truth," he said, and raised a piece of paper with the combination written on it. I opened the box and found an envelope inside.

"Am I supposed to open it?"

"You are. It's my graduation gift to you. Don't worry; I'm sure you know what to do with it."

I eagerly tore the envelope open and took out it's contents.

It was a plane ticket to Paris. Scheduled a month after graduation.

"Do you like it?" He asked.

"How did you manage to get a ticket for a flight that's scheduled almost two months in the future?"

He shrugged. "Connections. By that time, you'll probably have everything cleared up, right?"

"Yeah I guess."

This was totally weird. Why would he support me full on and then send me away from Fang? Was he assuming that he would still like me after I came back form Paris several years later? This was the twenty- first century after all. If a lot happened in three months, then I'd be missing out on a ton of stuff in four years.

"You do know that by 'everything' I meant Fang."

"Yeah, I had this vague idea."

It hit me that things wouldn't go out as planned. Nudge, Ella, and Angel would be disappointed that the results were not going to be as satisfactory, and that we were going to get more than separated during college seeing as I was going to be on another continent. There would be no summer romances, since nothing would ever last for more than a month.

I would be more than leaving Fang, too.

Right then, I knew what I had to do.

I had to tell him.

* * *

><p><strong>At least five more chapters left.<strong>

**On the other hand, how was your Tuesday? (You know, **_**that**_** Tuesday, feast of San Valentino) I spent mine watching other fellow Math geeks argue about parenthesis placements and how to write fractions properly.**

**Well, that's pretty much it. I hope you leave something in the reviews.**

**See you in a week (or two).**


	35. One Last Talk

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own MR.**

* * *

><p><em><strong>Fang<strong>_

A month had passed. And so did nine plans.

"Please, please, please Fang. Can we do THIS ONE?" Tess begged, pointing at a page of the flip chart we used. The part shown had a summary of the plans, and how it turned out in the end. Overtime, it got covered with random stuff from staying up all night and convincing me to do them.

_**Plan B: Fairy lights. Everyone loves fairy lights.**_ As much as I wanted to recreate some scene that had something to do with covering the whole clearing with the sparkly stuff, more complicated questions appeared, like on where we were supposed to plug it without disturbances, or if it was ever going to be seen from Max's window.

_**Plan C: Perform a cheesy and/or romantic song in the coffee shop where Max usually goes to.**_ It was always about the timing. I had done five songs in five different days without her showing up. Needless to say, the owner got tired and I never planned to return.

_**Plan D: Put a dozen or so roses in Max's locker with a message in each one. Without signing name**_. After discreetly leaving one rose with one message in her locker, she arrived at lunch holding it and saying, "I am going to kill whoever is pranking me again with my bare hands." We all agreed to cancel it, and I left an apology the next day.

_**Plan E: Write anonymous letters to her until the end of the year. **_This, Iggy figured, might've yielded the same results with the rose thing. So it was skipped.

_**Plan F: A notebook -slash- scrapbook filled with stuff concerning the two of them.**_ I wasn't a pack rat, so there wouldn't be much to put in it, even if it wasn't about only the two of us. Plus, photos of Max and I together were very rare that it would've been easier to just use Photoshop.

_**Plan G: WRITE SOMETHING FOR HER.**_ Most times anyone could compare my writing to my talking: I was pretty much a guy of a few words, and it got worse whenever I got nervous.

_**Plan H: Give a guitar, or any musical remembrance that would remind her of Fang.**_ To know what kind of guitar she wanted, Tess had this conversation with her and we found out that she hadn't touched the guitar since sophomore year, since she had stared focusing on academics.

_**Plan I: Chocolate. Lots and lots of chocolate. **_She had once told me that being given chocolates turned her off, because of the one time that her dad sent them chocolates and The Gasman ate a lot of them. He barfed them all up and remarked that they somewhat resembled the color of her eyes.

_**Plan J: Ask her to prom.**_ As easy and as realistic that seemed, there was no way in hell Max was going to a social event like that, even if someone like Fang or Iggy was the one to invite her.

So, yeah, they didn't turn out so well. Anyway, back to the present.

"Oh come on, Fang," Iggy said. "It's going to be really simple. You don't need to get dressed up, you don't need to bring anything saying 'relationship'."

Of course, it was a very simple plan. But it wasn't that easy. Tess wasn't pointing at Plan K or any other letter after that. She was pointing at the very top, at the first and probably the only plan I did not want to do or get involved in.

_**Plan A: Talk.**_

"Seriously, you are wearing me out from all the convincing speeches I gave you that didn't work." Tess added. "Why can't you do it?"

"Because things are still awkward between us. I don't think meeting at some coffee shop and talking about our feelings is going to help."

"Well, I guess we'll have to do this."

"Do what?"

Just then, Iggy snatched my phone from the table and threw it at Tess. She caught it with one hand and started texting.

"You're going to stop me if I try and get it back, right?" I asked Iggy. He nodded.

"Done." Tess said with a satisfied grin. I started to reach for it, but she put it in her pocket instead. "No way, you're not yet getting this."

"Then when can I get it back?"

"Before you talk. That is, if Max ever agrees."

* * *

><p><em><strong>Max<strong>_

As much as Nudge was convinced that all her plans were a hundred percent effective and fashion- savvy, well, it wasn't. For the former, anyway.

This was probably the tenth meeting, and so far, no plan worked. I watched as Nudge carefully spread out the plans on my carpet. Many of them had an x on the top right side in the red marker. All were stained by some sort of beverage, and a couple marked with lip gloss and eyeliner (Nudge's, I swear).

"How many do we have left?" Ella asked as she tried to count all the x's.

"Not much." Nudge replied. "And I'm already running out of ideas.

I snorted. I was pretty sure she had run out of them a long time ago.

_**Plan 002: Go to the clearing.**_ All about timing. Plus, from what we heard, Fang's also pretty much focused on studying now that it's senior year.

_**Plan 003: Ask Fang to help her with something music or guitar related.**_ Besides the fact that I hadn't touched my guitar in almost two years except to clean it, I didn't want to mess with its perpetual state. And again, a reference to academic standing.

_**Plan 004: Be at a place he's going to be.**_ Besides the timing (again), I didn't agree to this one because it sounded very stalker-ish. Also, I couldn't always waste my time trying to figure out where he was. And no way am I "coincidentally" going to be at his house. That's just plain creepy.

_**Plan 005: Write an I'm- crazy- for- you- letter.**_ I have to mention yet again that I am Max Ride and I do not do such thing as writing a mushy, romantic letter. There were also other things to worry about, like what I would do in such situation that Angel (who promised to be the messenger for this one) accidentally put it in the wrong locker.

After that, the other stuff became pretty much repetitive. It was all about where to go or what to give. Besides, according to Nudge, you can only reuse an outfit for so many times. So yeah, they were practically the same.

Except for one. And that was the only one I refused to do.

_**Plan 001: Talk.**_

I haven't had a decent conversation with Fang in what feels like an eternity. Asking him if he wanted to meet up somewhere and hang out with me and nobody else was a very complicated task. It was easier to say than to do.

"I still say it was Fang who gave you the rose. The vibes agree." Angel said.

"Anyone else could've done that. It wasn't in his handwriting, too. And why would he ever do it when he knew that so many incidents involving roses and the word 'prank' had happened before?"

"Because he might've wanted to take a chance?"

"Interesting, but I don't think that would ever happen."

Just then, my phone vibrated, giving a signal that I had just received a message. Nudge dived for it and let out a girly shriek five seconds later.

"What is it?" I asked.

"Fang just asked if you wanted to hang out with him tomorrow. Just him!" She exclaimed.

"No, I'm not-"

"Too late," Angel said. "She already replied yes. You better meet him at the main entrance after class."

Well, this might be my last chance anyway. So why not?

* * *

><p><em><strong>Third Person POV<strong>_

Max wasn't prepared for this. Fang wasn't either. But it had to be done sooner or later, with so little time left until they all part ways.

She was the first one to arrive. According to Nudge, Fang had arranged for a meeting at the diner uptown they used to eat ice cream at after school. Max had a sudden recollection of the last time the two of them went there, and how it turned out.

She hoped it would and would not end that way.

He, in the meanwhile, was making his way to the diner. Unlike Max, he wasn't alone: Iggy was there offering some guidance about talking with Max, which were what he learned first-hand. He didn't pay attention to that part, though. The only thing going on in his head were five words.

_Do not mess this up. Do not mess this up. Do not mess this up._

"Good luck. I'll be waiting out here." Iggy said as he pushed Fang through the doors.

As usual, they took each other's breath away. But there was no sign of that in either of them. Instead, he waved at her and sat down across the table.

"Hey," Max said.

"Hey."

"So, I guess we haven't talked for a while…"

"Yeah. I mean, we both are busy, with this being the last year and all that."

Both of them were close to hyperventilating. Neither would admit it.

Just like how neither of them knew the other's feelings.

"So, college, huh?" Max said. "It's like I want to leave high school, but I don't want to leave everything behind." _Like you,_ she added silently.

"Yeah, it's really, really crazy."

"So where are you going to college?"

"Well, I sort of decided on Belmont University, somewhere down in Tennessee."

_Oh,_ Max thought, a sinking feeling getting into her. Of course he wasn't going to stay here. It wasn't like he had a reason to. Maybe even if she didn't go, he still would.

"How about you? Where are you planning to go?" Fang asked, somehow hoping that she would be studying somewhere somewhat close to him.

"My dad, he planned out for me to stay with him in Paris. I agreed, and, well, I'll be leaving a couple of weeks after graduation."

If Max thought she had it bad, then she never really knew how Fang felt. It was quite farther than he expected. Max was going to be in a different continent which was an ocean away.

He hoped it wasn't a sign that they weren't meant to be together. She hoped so, too.

"So, are you going to prom?" He asked.

"I have no intentions whatsoever. But I'm pretty sure Nudge will find a way to drag me to school in heels and a dress."

He smiled a little. She loved it whenever random things made him smile, even if it was just a little curve on the corner. "Oh."

"How about you? Do you have a date for prom?" She asked.

"What? No. I don't think I'll be going either." _If I said I did, would she have gone to prom with me?_ He wondered.

Max nonchalantly checked the time on her watch. "I'm sure we should both go. I still have a lot of stuff to do, and I'm sure you do, too."

He nodded. "Yeah. You go ahead. I'll stay here for a bit."

"Um, Fang?" She called out, pulling on the threads of her shirt. This was it… it was the moment everyone must've been waiting for. "I…"

He kept on staring at her, and he was secretly hoping it wasn't any form of rejection.

"I… I'll… I'll see you tomorrow?"

He just nodded.

And the two hearts never did get the chance to become one that day.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Fang<strong>_

Of course Plan A would be a failure, like I knew it would be.

_She probably never even thought of me until then._

I watched her leave the diner without looking back or waving. And for the next few minutes, I just sat there fiddling with the tiny box of tissues, reflecting on our three- minute conversation. Yup, I was totally a failure. A part of me wanted to follow her to Paris. Crazy, knowing that it's not like we're going to be together, anyway.

And I was so caught up with thinking that I didn't even notice Iggy enter the diner, curse very loudly when his head collided with the bell, and sit down across me.

"How'd it go?" He asked, and I jumped, almost falling out of my chair.

"Geez, Iggy, subtle much?"

"Did you not see me enter?"

"Sorry, just thinking of other stuff."

"So are you planning to tell me what happened? Unless you two made out instead of talked, then you can keep the story to yourself."

"Wait, you didn't keep an eye on us or something?"

He shrugged. "There was this guy selling pretzels, and I was really hungry. So did you guys make out?"

The guy part of me wished we had. "No, we did not make out. Also, no, I did not kiss her spontaneously."

"So nothing good happened?"

"Yeah, something like that."

"Then what did the two of you talk about?"

I told him the whole story, which only took one minute and thirteen seconds. The whole time, there were no side comments at all.

"She really is going to Paris," he said.

"So you knew something about this?"

"Well, yes. She once mentioned it to me when we were dating. Worth it for her, I guess, since she wants to spend time with her dad."

"Yeah, I guess you're right."

"But that is so not an excuse for you to give up. I know that Tess is somewhere finishing all twenty six plans."

"And if those plans hypothetically fail?"

"Then we'll look for whatever's next on those Microsoft spreadsheets. Fang, just because Max told you she's moving to another continent, and then chickening out at the last minute and not saying her true feelings-"

"If she ever had any." I said. He ignored my comment, as usual.

"Doesn't mean you have to avoid it, too. Do it like how it's done in movies. Take a risk or whatever they do. I mean, come on. Even _I_ am getting tired of the I- don't- want- to- tell- her- how- I- feel crap. A lot of us have been tired of it since day one."

"I'm not getting moved by your speech, Ig."

"I'm not planning to move you. That never works on you. We always force you. _That_ always works."

"Ooh, I can't wait to find out what you two are going to convince me to do this time." I retorted with dripping sarcasm.

Iggy's phone rang, and he made the universal hand signal for _just a minute_. I watched him get out of the booth and lean against one of the unoccupied tables. It was obviously about me, since he kept looking at me. Or maybe he was just waiting for me to decide on what I wanted to do next. About Max, I mean.

"Who did you just talk to?" I asked once he got back.

"Your dearest sister. Who, by the way, was mad at you for not being spontaneous in any way at all. And she probably got madder after I told her what happened. On the bright side, we have a sequel."

"Is it new?"

He smiled, raised his pinky, and drew a _J_ in the air. A reference to Plan J, which was to ask her to prom.

"You do know that I can't ask her to prom, right? Do you not recall me saying something about her not planning to go to such social event?"

"Just a little alteration. You get prepared for a sort- of dateless prom, and then we'll find a way to convince Max to go there, also dateless."

"Impossible."

Iggy narrowed his eyes. "You underestimate my power."

* * *

><p><em><strong>Max<strong>_

Well, that didn't turn out as expected. On the other hand, "unintentionally be in a rom- com- like scene" got ticked off my bucket list.

Actually, no. I don't have a bucket list. And like any other person, I totally regretted not saying those words. "I'll see you tomorrow?" That was the most stupid thing that kept coming out of my mouth. The walkout? And I once wondered if I was an idiot. I guess I have the answer now.

Worst (but slightly the best) three and a half minutes of my life.

It wasn't like I chickened out at the last minute. I somewhat did, but that was not what really happened. I'm blaming it on Nudge who made me watch too many chick- flicks. I would never want to tell a guy that I'll be leaving soon, tell him that I'm in love with him, and then spend a month with him before leaving for what would be at least four years. Across the country might have a chance. But across the ocean? The couple in _Going the Distance_ didn't even get together in the end. If our chances were in percent, there would have to be a lot of zeros after the decimal point before it got to the actual number.

That was exactly what I told Nudge. Verbatim, though you have to change a couple of nouns here and there. But she, of course, did not buy it.

"Max, you do know that that's the substance of any other romance movie? The girl would be like, 'I don't want to be _that_ kind of girl'. After the next thirty minutes, she WILL be that girl. Especially if she said, 'I don't want to be that kind of girl _right now_'." Nudge replied.

"Face it Max," Ella said, "you really were just scared. Even if we all know he wouldn't be rejecting you."

"Please rewind and correct that statement."

Angel rolled her eyes. "That's cute. You know, the two of you are actually turning to the substance of any other romance movie. The girl that likes the guy but can't tell him, and vice versa. _Combined_."

"Well that makes me feel better." I replied with dripping sarcasm. "But he's leaving, too. So I don't think this would work. Or begin, for that matter."

"Just because you're giving up doesn't mean we are." Nudge said. "You guys are somewhat perfect together."

"Remove the 'somewhat' before she makes another pessimistic correction." Angel said.

Before I could interject, Nudge said, "You guys are perfect together."

"Stop that. I am ending this." I said, and stood up.

"Yeah right. _You_ are going to prom." Ella said. That made me sit back down.

"How is that even related to this?"

"So the two of you can dance all night." Angel added.

"He's not even planning to go!"

Nudge pulled out her cellphone and flashed a mischievous grin across her face. "I'll find a way to convince him. And you better find a decent dress."

* * *

><p><strong>You, yes <strong>_**you**_**, must be wondering why I updated just now. Well, one word: FINALS. It's March, I was busy, and now there's a week left until I am on va- freaking- cation. Which means that I will also have time to write more.**

**So, any suggestions for the Prom chapter?**

**I'll be making this short and probably sweet. Wanna leave a review?**

**See ya!**


	36. Prom

**NOTE: A huge thank you to flocklover19 for all the reviews. Also, thanks to MPHknows for letting me use one of her characters for this chapter.**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own MR. Nor do I own any of the songs that will be mentioned.**

* * *

><p><em><strong>Fang<strong>_

I didn't care if Max was going to be there or if this was probably my last chance to get her. As the average male, I was supposed to be not as eager as the female.

"Stop moving," Tess said, slapping my arm. She was fully dressed and styled, while I was in the average classic black tuxedo. I watched as she finished doing the bow tie on my tux and brushed imaginary dust off her dress.

For this one night, everyone did their best to look impossibly good. Even Iggy, who was in an almost similar penguin suit. Although I had to admit, I did sort of look "dashing" in mine.

"I don't know dude," Iggy said with a raised eyebrow. "I think you'd look better in a suit. Neckties would probably always work on you."

"And you know that because?"

That caused Iggy to shut up. It was the three of us, plus our parents at Tess' place. They beamed and took embarrassing pictures of us while we waited for no one in particular. Tess' date was going to meet her there, and so was Iggy's. I was still hoping that I would be with one particular girl.

Honestly, I still didn't get what the Prom Hype was about. A couple of weeks ago, Iggy and I were forced to join Tess on more than three hours of foot pain and torture. In other words, shopping. She tried on dress after dress while we played hide and seek behind the racks. And then finally she decided on a simple green floor-length gown that had been on the first store we visited and went back to. The tuxedoes were pretty quick, since all that was needed was our sizes. The only good part was that Tess agreed to get some foot massages after.

Also, if I recall correctly, some guy once compared Prom to the Olympics. You had to wait four years, only three people have a good time and every else gets to live on with shattered dreams. Maybe it wasn't that extreme, but this was probably my case, too. It wasn't like Max and I could talk on Graduation, so yes, Prom was the only opportunity I had left.

"Don't worry," Tess said as the three of us walked to my parents' car. Since I could drive, the adults spared us the humiliation and allowed us to go there by ourselves after a lengthy lecture about alcohol abuse. "I'm sure that brain of yours will work this time and do good."

"Well, thanks for the support." I answered sarcastically as I climbed in and adjusted my seatbelt. "Let's just hope Max will be somehow in on it."

"Oh I'm sure she will. I texted Nudge a little while back and convinced her to convince Max to go to Prom. You know that girl and her powers of persuasion."

"Even if she happened to be sick?"

"Yes."

Well, I'll be hoping this is going to work.

* * *

><p>From outside of the school, you couldn't imagine that there was going to be a wild party filled with seniors. Even if Prom wasn't going to be held in the gymnasium.<p>

"Everything good to go?" Tess asked, eyeing us up and down. Our tickets were on hand, our shoes shined, our hair tamed, boutonnieres fixed, and tuxedoes wrinkle- free. She was the female version of that. I gave her a thumbs up, and we gathered among the crowd of formally- dressed students all heading to this one large room in the same building as the theater which the drama club kept as an excuse for students' free practice.

"Oh, hey, there she is." Iggy said, eyes motioning to a girl with long, dirty- blonde hair, obviously Iggy's date. She smiled and waved a little as the three of us approached her.

"Hey guys," She said with a giggle, and finger combed her hair.

"Um, Lupo, this is Tess and Fang." He said, motioning to the two of us. "Tess and Fang, Lupo."

"No offense, but is that your real name?" Tess asked.

She shrugged. "My parents were fans of some very uncanny things. Are the two of you going together?"

"No," I quickly replied. "She's meeting up with someone, and I will be randomly waiting for someone."

"Where are those four, anyway?" Iggy asked.

"Present!" Someone called out. We turned to see Nudge, Angel and Ella walk towards us in what seemed like slow motion, Charlie's Angels style. Nudge was wearing a sapphire cocktail dress which was slightly longer than she usually opted for, since it was already brushing her knees. Angel looked like a fairy in a puffy pink dress, while Ella was clad in a soft beige gown.

"Hey, you guys look great!" Tess said with a smile. Iggy gave the same compliments and introduced them to Lupo, who also praised their fashion- sense.

"You cannot believe how long it took us to prepare." Nudge said, and then spent the next fifteen minutes talking about hair styles and make- up.

"Well, compared to Max, ours seemed like a minute." Ella quipped.

"But at least we didn't have to tie her down like this time." She replied.

"Huh." I said, seventy- five percent average- guy- fascination, and the rest Max- fascination. Because really, Max is not the type of girl you'd expect to take long getting prepared.

"I mean, it took forever on the hair alone. And that was just untangling it. We were almost prepared to chop it off and stuff. Not literally, of course."

"Wait," Tess said, and looked around a bit. "Where is Max, anyway?"

Nudge flashed a grin at both of us. "Oh, she'll be making an entrance."

Tess glanced at me with a look that said _I told you so._ Yep, the girls were definitely in on it.

* * *

><p>For the first seven and a half minutes of Prom, I felt like a total eleventh wheel. Basically a third wheel that is way worse in so many levels.<p>

I agreed to get a table fixed for twelve and sat down along as the gang, minus Max, and their dates went to the photo booth to get pictures. And while I waited, I watched as other students took their seats in tables also with an even number of chairs. The only difference was that they came and left two by two.

Around the time they were gone, I also started a scavenger hunt. Since it was pretty hard to look for a face with all the lights, I tried to imagine what Max would wear or would be forced to wear on a night like this. Nothing too long, since she might trip. Something that would've matched her skin or her eyes. Random stuff like that.

And when I saw her, I was definitely not expecting her to look so freaking amazing.

Even if her dress was white, it still matched her in a good way. Also, her dress was surprisingly long. Her hair cascaded down in waves, though a small section of the hair beside her face was tied back. She did actually look too much like a real girl. The only telltale sign that she was Max was the bracelet on her wrist that she always wore, no matter how much Nudge said it looked bad.

If this was some scene in some movie, then the camera would have focused on me, looking awed, then it would focus on Max who looked amazing, smiling at no one and glancing in random directions, perhaps looking for the gang. That would probably happen while some obvious song like _Stop and Stare _or _Beautiful Disaster_ played in the background.

"Dude, what are you looking at?" Iggy, who arrived with the rest, looked at Max's general direction. "Is it me, or does that chick look a lot like Max?"

"Well, I can see those hours of hard work were totally worth it." I heard Tess say to Nudge.

Once Max saw all of us, her smile grew wider and she quickly went over to our table.

"You order me to arrive late and then abandon me once I 'make an entrance'." She said, firing a look at Nudge, and taking a seat right across the table from me.

"Well I got here just in time, Nudge said, also sitting down. The others followed her lead.

Thank God I was good at making poker faces, because the whole night would've been awkward if Max caught me drooling at her even for a second.

This was definitely going to get complicated.

* * *

><p>Fifteen minutes into Max's arrival, I had the realization that giving up and trying might've turned out pretty much the same.<p>

For starters, there was the part about her sitting right across me. Iggy and Tess, plus their dates, asked Max to go with them, and while the five we're gone, the remaining couples shifted their seats and Ella gave a small smile at me. The results were not as satisfying though, when Max arrived first and secured the vacant seat which was the farthest from me. No one tried to persuade her to move since it might've ruined the night.

Second, there was the small talk. Everyone was divided in their own groups, and even if Max and I had no one else to talk to, there was still the distance to consider.

And then the fact that she still hadn't smiled at me just added to the heartbreaking proof that this night was turning bad for me.

"Excuse me." Max said, and she stood up, carried her things with her, and headed outside.

"Is she leaving?" Nudge asked, a mortified expression on her face. She sounded like someone who wanted to go yet at the same time she just wanted to sit there. Ella, Angel, Tess, and Iggy turned to me with looks that said, _go make a move_. So I stood up, and headed outside.

Max was lingering near the entrance of the theater building, her head peeking through the glass doors and the rest of her hiding behind the structure's brick walls.

"Max, you okay?" I asked. This seemed to startle her a little, and she turned around, her fist ready. I had to take a step back to dodge her punch.

"Sorry," she said sheepishly, and for the first time that night, flashed me a grin. "Reflexes."

"What are you looking at?" I asked, taking my position behind her- probably a bit too close, but then she didn't complain- and staring at the direction she was turned to.

Dylan was at the parking lot, leaning against a car, which I would guess was his. He was probably wearing earphones, since his head bobbed up and down.

"What is he doing here this time?" She hissed.

We waited for a couple more minutes, and then a girl approached him. She was probably about his age, and judging by how they hugged each other and she gave him a soft kiss on the cheek, they were together. I heard Max let out a sigh of relief.

"Wow." I said. Dylan, after all, didn't seem like the guy who took things _that_ slow with someone.

"Wow." Max repeated. We watched them leave, and then remained standing near the entrance.

"You cold?" I asked. The winds were pretty strong, which was a bit weird for this time of the year.

"A bit. Pretty cool for a June, huh?"

I started to remove my jacket, but Max stopped me and put my arms down.

"Oh, no thanks," She said, fixing the jacket in a manner that made her seem either like my mom or a girlfriend. "It would be really awkward to wear your jacket for three minutes and then head back inside for the rest of the night."

I shifted my position so that I could wrap an arm around her. "Feels better?"

"Yeah."

We stayed there for a bit and then headed back, the distance between us nearer than before. And of course, when we approached the table, there were two available seats beside each other.

I turned and raised an eyebrow at Tess. She gave me a look that said, _it is on_.

* * *

><p>Contrary to what the rest of the people on the table thought, seating us beside each other was a good idea, but it wasn't exactly the best. Max and I hardly faced nor spoke to each other. We ate our dinner in silence while the others talked, and we both chose to stay where we were during all the songs, whether slow or fast.<p>

So no, this was still not turning out to be the "best night ever for Mang" as Iggy described. Iggy and Tess always used "Mang" whenever they referred to the two of us, even if I keep telling them that the name "Mang" is lame.

There we were, practically the only two people seated in the whole room, watching the Prom crowd dance to some fast song.

"Do they ever get tired?" I thought out loud, mainly for the sake of conversation.

"You could say that." Max replied, looking at the pile of heels left by various girls who were dancing. "I suddenly have the impulse to take a shoe from each pair and hide it."

"Well, tell me if you're planning to and I'll gladly join you."

End of conversation. Nope, still wasn't the "best night ever for Mang".

I saw Iggy say something to Lupo who nodded, and he approached the table.

"What?" I asked.

Without saying anything, he grabbed me by the arm and pulled me to another vacant table.

"Tell me I should've excused you because you were so engaged in conversation with Max." He said.

"Well, that's sort of hard since-"

He smacked me on the arm. "What the hell are you doing, man? This is supposed to be the best night ever for Mang."

"I can't even say twenty words to her."

"Just remember, actions speak louder than words." He said and twitched his left eye, which I assumed was meant to be a wink. "Now go ask that fine young lady to dance."

He pushed me back to our table and headed back to the dance floor. A part of the song came on, and like a character in a typical teenage movie, I somehow got moved by it.

"_Hey, day dreamer/You gotta be prepared to leave her in your fantasy/'Cause when it's over/You gotta make sure that it's you who'll be with her._"

Well, that pretty much inspired 10 percent of my ask- Max- to- dance- plan. The rest was more on just wanting to get this over with.

I didn't know if it was the insane part taking over me or the somewhat courageous part, but the next minute I pushed back my chair, bowed in front of Max like some guy from the 18th century, and held out my hand. And maybe Max's insane part was also taking over her, because she gladly took the offer and we joined everyone else on the dance floor. We were both prepared to awkwardly bust some moves when Angel stepped up and said something to the DJ. The song stopped and it was replaced by the opening bars to _We'll Be A Dream_.

I turned to look at Max, and she was in just as much shock as I was. Angel smiled at both of us and stepped of the stage.

"Well…" she started.

"You want to dance?" I asked.

She smiled. "Yeah, I want to." She said, and I put my hands on her waist while hers settled on my shoulders.

We danced, and I started to think that this was starting to turn into the "best night ever for Mang".

* * *

><p>In case anyone was wondering, that part with Max didn't actually last all night.<p>

After two slow and somewhat romantic dances, everyone was itching for a fast song, so the two of us sat down since we both had very horrible moves. It was back to awkward mode once again. Except there was a slight improvement since Max still sat down beside me even if the others still weren't sitting down.

For the rest of the night, we watched others dance their heart out, including Iggy who apparently had a lot to show when it came to Katy Perry songs. They rarely came by except when one of the girls needed something. The only part where they sat down after our dance was during the awarding for the Prom King and Queen. We watched as a guy and a girl from one of my classes were crowned and started to dance. Then they got up, and that activated awkward mode for the infinite time. This went on until midnight. After that, things slightly changed.

"I'm guessing no one's tired yet," the DJ said, looking at the crowd of dancers. "But we need to get over with this party, so everyone, better save this for someone special, because this is the last dance."

A minute was given for the couples to find each other. That got me thinking if I could ask Max without her getting creeped out at my invitation, since I am in the friend zone after all, as far as I know. But the clock was ticking, and I knew that the insane part of me, plus Iggy and Tess and maybe their dates, and probably Nudge, Angel and Ella and their dates wanted me to do it. So I looked her in the eye, stood up, and offered my hand. She gladly took it, and we went over to our group of friends. By then, everyone was already paired up and ready to dance.

The opening bars of a slow song came up, and I heard Max mutter, "I love this song."

"_Chasing Cars_? Yeah, it's pretty awesome." I said as it neared the first stanza and several couples began dancing.

"You know? This is the only part of the night I like. By that, I mean the parts when I danced with you."

Did she mean that as a friend or not?

As we danced, I didn't see the thumbs up Iggy gave my way or the huge grin Tess had on her face upon seeing us. I didn't hear Ella giggle, nor did I hear Angel say how sweet we were together.

For those four and a half minutes, all I did was look into Max's eyes and dance.

* * *

><p>"Go ahead, Fang, we have our own rides." Tess said waving at me.<p>

After the reminder from the principal that we better sober up because tomorrow was graduation, everyone started to get their stuff and leave. I was about to go with Tess, Iggy and their dates when Max suddenly started catching up with me.

"Hey, I have this crazy idea that you'd want to join me in 'sobering up'." She said. "So do you want to join me?"

"Well, where are you planning to 'sober up'?"

"The diner uptown. The one where we went to the last time."

I turned to ask Tess, but she nodded and assured me they had several ways to get home since Iggy and Lupo was also coming with them. They walked off and then it was just me and Max making our way to the car. And like a true gentleman, I opened the door for her.

"Here," I said, handing her my jacket after she got in. "It's still pretty cold even if the windows aren't down."

"Thanks," she said, and I swore I saw her blush.

We spent the rest of the drive in silence, but then we started to get chatty once we arrived at the diner.

"It feels sort of weird getting ice cream when it's pretty cold," she said with a smile once we made our orders.

"I agree. But then it's ice cream, and no way am I passing that up." I replied.

"Damn. I can't believe tomorrow's graduation already. I am so freaking old."

"Well, so am I. Who thought of having graduation the day after prom , anyway?"

"I know. I mean, I can't believe we're already seniors and we're already going to graduate. I still remember those times back in freshman year when you were teaching me to play guitar."

"Oh, yeah. I remember that, too."

"And I can't believe we're going to be apart. You're moving to Tennessee and I'm heading over to another continent. I'm totally gonna miss you."

"Yeah, me too."

Our sundaes arrived, and we quickly devoured them in silence I laughed as she let out a huge burp and she joined in.

"Thanks, Fang," she said, grinning sweetly at me. "If you weren't here, then I wouldn't be having any fun at all."

"Yeah, maybe you'd just be sitting here drinking coffee and pretending to sober up."

"Well, yeah that's true. But I'm not just talking about this part. I'm referring to the whole part. Even if we weren't completely talking to each other, it was still nice to know that you we're stuck there with me too."

"I was glad to be stuck with you."

"And it was totally romantic of you to dance with me. Thanks, really."

"You're welcome."

And like every other teenage movie, it ended with a kiss.

* * *

><p><strong>DISCLAIMER 2: The quote referring to prom was from the movie "Prom". I don't own that. <strong>_**Stop and Star **_**by OneRepublic and **_**Beautiful Disaster**_** by John Mayer are part of the stuff that I do not own. The lyrics found are from the song **_**Hey Daydreamer **_**by Somedaydream. Still not mine. And **_**We'll Be a Dream**_** by We the Kings (feat. Demi Lovato) and **_**Chasing Cars **_**by Snow Patrol? Nope, not mine either.**

**Oh gosh, three chapters. I really am going to miss this.**

**Sorry if this took a week, even if I'm on vacation (with summer classes, unfortunately. Still about journalism).**

**So a random question: Do you have a pillow pet? (Mine's a turtle =D)**

**I'll see you guys soon. =D**


	37. Graduation

**NOTE: Thank you to Sierra156.**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own MR.**

* * *

><p><em><strong>Max<strong>_

This morning was one of those rare moments where I stood still as Nudge applied make- up on my face. One of those few times where I'd smile and laugh and thank someone whenever they said I looked pretty. After all, this might be one of the last times I'll get to see them.

Everything felt like it was in fast forward. I could still remember every single guitar lesson Fang taught me back in freshman year. Every single dance lesson, and every single line of that one song I had to sing in _Aladdin_. I could still recall his face when we were about to "kiss" in that one rehearsal for _Cyrano de Bergerac_. How huge and sandy his back was when he fell on top of me when we played soccer. How weird he was to give me that kiss. Or "kisses" might've been a better term.

There was that one in _Aladdin_, when I was so nervous before my scene. It was just an honest mistake, but hey, it was still a kiss. Then the one after that, the day after the after party that celebrated the play's success. It was another kiss, but this time intended. The one in junior year, at the tree in the clearing. Magical, in the middle of the night high up. After that, when we talked and he kissed me in the park. During that party, when I was intoxicated, though _I_ kissed him, triggered by the thoughts I always hid. In the beach, in the middle of the pouring rain while all of us were having fun in the water. At the hospital, while he was still recovering from his accident. And then last night, while we pretended to sober up in the diner. I'm pretty sure those are it.

But damn, those _are_ a lot of kisses.

After four years of practically making out with Fang, I still haven't told him what I really feel. I have about a week or two to tell him, and so far there's still no plan. Well, there are a couple of ideas form Nudge and Ella and Angel, but they weren't ones that I would've thought of.

"Hey Max, can I talk to you for a second?" Ella asked. I nodded and we both headed out to our backyard.

"Let me guess," I said. "This is about Fang, right?"

She smiled. "Well, I have to at least make on final convincing speech. It's part of my job."

I sit on our swing set. "You can start now."

"We're already graduating, Max. Do you not like him that much to not tell him how you feel?"

"No. I like him more than everyone knows."

"He'll be leaving too, you know."

"I do know. And I'll miss him more than he expects me too."

"Well, that and vice versa." I started to reason out with her, but she continued. "You know it's true. Look at all the crazy things Fang did for you. I bet he hasn't done half of those for Iggy or for his family."

"I have to admit that yes, he did do a lot of stuff without thinking about it. And vice versa." I said, remembering that one time I snuck out in the middle of the night to help him. "But it's sort of going to be all for nothing, huh?"

She smiled again. "Not really." Before I could ask why, she dug around her purse and pulled out a small piece of paper, typically the size of a post- it, and a pen. "Write it down. I think you already know how to give it to him."

I did know how, so I wrote my message, kept it in a pocket, and hoped that I wouldn't chicken out in the last minute.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Fang<strong>_

Everyone, as it seemed, was really excited about graduating.

Iggy, Tess and I were one of the few people who were fast enough in preparing to gather around in the school's courtyard. While the other students were hanging out or doing pranks that could've gotten them in detention during the school year, Tess was with her group of friends and the two of us watched everyone else from the school's steps. Or maybe that was only Iggy. I was mainly looking for Max.

For one thing, I still couldn't get over last night. On how awkward we were the whole year, and then one kiss suddenly made up for it. And how she said that it sucked that we were both moving, and that she was going to miss me. She probably meant that as a friend, but I had the feeling there was something missing. She didn't put any positive spin to it, like "but then we'll end up doing this sooner or later". She looked upset and stuff. Not to mention the kiss. It wasn't as great as the one we had on the tree or when I was in the hospital, but I knew it counted, and it was one of the factors that chances are she meant it as more than a friend.

So there was still hope for me.

There was, but not much. We _were_ both leaving. Long distance might work, since it's not like there are other people interested in us or we're interested in other people. Maybe it wouldn't. I mean, I've heard from Max on how hard it is to communicate with her dad. Maybe she'd be too tired at the end of the day that she wouldn't have energy to talk to me. Either I'm pessimistic or realistic. I think pessimistic would work better.

Four years later, after guitar lessons, dance lessons, play rehearsals, soccer games, camp fires, blood donations, and so much more, I still haven't had the nerve to tell her how I really feel.

"So, graduation, huh?" Iggy asked.

"I know. We finally get to leave this hell hole for a much larger, more expensive one."

He laughed. "Very true. But hey, we get to be wilder." When that didn't trigger a reaction from me, he added, "You want to be wild with someone else, huh?"

I shrugged. Then he once again added, "Just like that party last year, I'd be guessing."

What party? Memories of that one night suddenly went back. The dancing, which I was not very fond of. The counter and me being forced against it by a very intoxicated Max brought to you by Dylan. I specifically remember that I told Iggy to get her a glass of water, which by some miracle was not found in the kitchen.

"You know about that?" I asked.

"I'm your best friend; I know a lot of things. But really, what's holding you back? Are you suddenly starting to regret everything now?"

"Well, no. Yes. I don't know."

"What? Rephrase that."

"It's just that I don't regret doing all of it." Even if some of those things I've done would offend you, I add mentally. "The only thing I regret was not doing it sooner. Or maybe not doing it in a better way."

"I don't believe in that. You've been with her since the beginning of freshman year. I'd say that's four years well spent."

"No, not four years. I'd say three and a half, give or take a month or two. Our friendship had gaps. But this is going to be the largest one yet. And I'm sure this'll end it."

Someone called his name and he stood up and brushed the dirt of his pants. "Well, first of all, you're scaring me with the lengths of your speeches." He laughed when I made a face, and then went on. "Don't worry, dude. I know you'll find a way. You always found a way to be with her, whether you liked it or not."

"Hey, Ig." I said as he started to walk a way.

"Yeah?"

"I always liked it."

* * *

><p><em><strong>Max<strong>_

The whole thing went by with a blur.

When we got there, names were called and we were immediately separated from each other and herded to our places in line. Then the part where all graduates head to the hall, the very same one where our Prom took place and take their seats. I don't remember a thing about what our class valedictorian said. And I can't recall if I smiled when they got my picture taken after I received my diploma. The only parts worth reminiscing were after graduation. That part where groups of friends gather around and either say goodbyes or say that they'll meet each other at someone's after party.

The first person who tackled me was of course, Nudge.

"Finally, Max! We're free!" She squealed. If I wasn't heavier than her than she would've lifted me up and twirled me around.

"Yeah. And we get to do stupid stuff that we never could during the school year." Angel added as she and Ella made their way to us.

"Eh, that'll just go on our permanent record." Ella said, making a face.

We're not actually going to say our goodbyes yet, since none of us got into any early acceptance program and we all swore to spend any waking moment together until I leave for France. As for the others, say Tess, Iggy, and Fang, we'll never know when we have to.

"Hey, Max!" Iggy called out, the three of them heading towards the fours of us, with him in the lead. Even if he's tall and thin, he still managed to crush me with his hug.

"Congratulations guys," Tess said, giving all of us a hug.

Fang sort of stood there, and I was the first to approach him. At first I was expecting a hand shake or a high- five. But there I was, hugging him and me hugging him back. Like that one time in sophomore year, when we went stargazing and he walked me to my cousin's house. Then he hugged me, and I felt really weird, only in a good way.

After the hug, we looked at each other, with me grinning like crazy and him giving the biggest smile I've seen on him. But then the two smiles faltered with the reminder that we're going to be really far from each other taking place in our minds.

"So," he started. "You still have three weeks left, right?"

"Yeah. Well, at least you get to spend the whole summer here."

He shrugged and looked down at his feet. "Not really. I have some time between next week and the week after that. I sort of signed up for a summer program thing."

"I guess we'll have to spend it more wisely, huh?"

His smile went back. "Yeah, I guess."

For a few minutes we just stood there, looking and waving and thanking others that greet us while sneaking glances of each other in between. Then the dreaded moment came: my mother and brother called me, saying that we should leave early before other places become packed. I gave him one last hug and waved good- bye.

Before we completely left the building, Ella caught sight of me and made a box in the air with her index finger. It was, without doubt, about the note. She started to make her way to me but got pushed back by other people heading the opposite way.

"Don't worry, I did." I called out before we went through the doors.

Now the only thing that's left is for him to actually read it.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Fang<strong>_

I may be not that good at socializing, but my parents are. Whenever there are major events going on, say, my graduation, they overdo it with the celebrations. They invite our relatives and neighbors and their co- workers and other people I don't know. There's always food, and either or both of them manage to get drunk by midnight. And if they had it their way, they would've brought down the old karaoke machine and persuade everyone, including me, to sing at least one song.

Yeah, my parents are crazy.

Usually during these kinds of events I would lock myself in my room and do something more entertaining that doesn't include anyone. If it does, none of us would talk. But that time, since I was the "star of the event", I had to stay downstairs in the same itchy outfit they made me wear earlier and shake everyone's hand and thank them when they congratulate me. Which I had done for more than a trillion times. Some were even done twice, mainly by the drunk or about- to- be- drunk.

After I got tired of walking around and getting stopped every five minutes by greetings, I parked myself on the couch in between two couples making out. Iggy, unfortunately, had his own kind of celebration no matter how wild this party would get. And Tess, even if she was my half- sister, was not someone my parents casually introduced to others. It was the same with me on her family, anyway. But with all my cousins busy getting drunk or high or making out, I was pretty much alone.

"Fang, there you are!" My surprisingly sober mother said, as she towed my also sober father in my direction. She kicked out the sloppy teenagers eating each other's faces and sat down with him. One of my cousins sat down across us.

"You remember your cousin Daniel, right?" My mom asked, motioning a hand to him. I nodded. He was just one year older and went to Belmont, the university I got accepted to. He was actually the one who recommended the school to me.

"Well, if I recall correctly your program thing starts in a week or two." She continued. "Luckily, he got a room in one of the new dorms. And he needs a roommate."

"Cool." I said, sending a small smile in his direction. "So, when should I move in?"

He cleared his throat. "Since you already have a lot of your stuff with my mom, well, I'm leaving early tomorrow morning. You want to come with me?"

I thought about it. But really, I didn't have much of a decision. Even if it meant leaving Max early, it wasn't like we were together or anything. Plus, I heard that she and her friends were planning to spend every waking moment together. So I nodded in a manner which I hoped looked eager.

"Great. You can start packing up the rest of your things now, if you want."

With the promise of an excuse not to socialize with any more people, I ran up the stairs and grabbed a bag. Before I started putting in stuff, I planned to change into more normal clothes, so I started taking random things out of my pockets.

And that was when I saw the note.

It was short and simple: _I love you -Max_. Those three words were pretty much the only thing that took me to get the box that had been sitting in my room for four years, grab some change, and run outside without explanation, at least for the others.

It was the only thing that took for me to get to Max's as fast as I could.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Max<strong>_

The morning after graduation somehow felt like the morning after that wild party the year before. There were unavoidable coincidences, like the fact that I woke up in the clothes that I wore the night before, and that I had a feeling that there was something going on. After getting up and changing clothes, I looked around. Nothing was wrong.

Except for my desk by the window.

Actually, I never used that desk except to have some place to pile up my stuff. It was my mother's idea to place it by the window, in hopes that that would encourage me more. But no, it didn't. Over the years a lot of junk had been piled up on it, and it was my duty to sort it out annually so I could stock up again the next year.

Amidst the trash I managed to accumulate over the past school year, a small box about the size of a hand bag was settled on top. That was definitely not mine. The main idea was that someone had put it there last night. Maybe it was mom or Ella. But I knew that whenever they wanted me to see something, they usually put it on the small table beside my bed. They rarely touched my desk.

Then I saw the window next. I always had a hard time opening and closing it, so I kept it somewhere in the middle. Now the window was an inch or two from being shut. That would've meant that whoever gave me the box used the window. I started to think that someone broke in to my room that night, but then I remembered that even before I crashed I felt that the room was stuffier. I slowly approached the box, in any case that something was going to jump out.

As it turned out, the only thing that jumped at me were the words _For Max_ in the world's most familiar and messed- up- in- a- good- way handwriting. Or more specifically, Fang's handwriting. I took off the cover and found four CD's and a piece of paper.

Maybe that was it. Maybe it was a message for me. I didn't want to read the letter just yet, so I put the stuff back and covered it again. I thought about listening to it at that moment, but then there were other people in the house. I looked for my old laptop, the one that still had a CD drive and put it in my bag along with the box.

First, I had to call Fang. It rang forever and no one answered.

The only way that I could find out what was really in the box was to listen to them. So I grabbed my stuff and ran out of the house before anyone could ask me anything.

"Good morning Max, you're up quite early."

"Good morning Mrs. Carlton." I greeted our elderly neighbor. "Did you see anyone go here last night? Before we arrived?"

She thought of it for second before nodding. "I think he was a young boy about your age."

"Did he, by any chance, wear a lot of black?"

"Well, yes he did." She replied, and then let out a small gasp. "Oh I'm so sorry Maxine, I should've known he was a burglar."

"Oh, no Mrs. Carlton, he's a friend of mine, he just likes black. I'll see you around."

She waved back and I started heading for the one place I could listen to everything in peace: the clearing.

And I was seriously hoping that he was there.

* * *

><p><strong>Sorry for the slightly confusing POV's. That'll be the last time you'll see things in Fang's eye.<strong>

**Also, it suddenly occurred to me that for the whole story, I never even gave him a last name.**

**Even though it's summer already, I'm pretty slow in updating. Still, anything to tell me in your reviews?**

**See you in a week (or two) =D.**


	38. Inside the Box

**Thank you Xx-Twitch-xX =D. I'll be having a lot to say later on.**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own MR. Nor do I own any of the songs that will be mentioned.**

* * *

><p>He wasn't there. I even looked up at the trees surrounding the clearing. There was no sign of a teenager dressed in black. There was a note taped to the tree in the middle though. But it didn't have anything, just a small heart at the upper left corner.<p>

All that was left to assume was that it was from Fang. And he was here before I was. I looped the strap of my bag on one arm and started climbing the tree. It was no big deal, since I had done it before. And if Fang came back, well, I wanted to surprise him, as weird as that sounded. I settled on one of the thicker branches and opened the box he left. The piece of paper was on top, so I took it out first.

_Dear Max,_

_Sorry if the handwriting's a bit shaky. I'm writing this on a bus._

_I found your note. And you know what? I love you too. Yeah, that's right. I am in love with Maximum Ride._

_To be honest, I noticed you way before we actually met. At first, I didn't want to be the kind of guy that liked a girl only because she was pretty (you are, don't deny it). But then we became friends, maybe even more, and I found out how amazing you are. All the things you did kept on piling up on the list of reasons why I love you. Don't ask for the list; it's too long. But I hope what's in the box will be enough for now._

_This isn't a prank, I swear. That rose I gave wasn't one, either. I love everything about you. Every single thing. If you asked me to point out all of it, then I would. Your smile, your eyes, your voice, your laugh, your kisses, your kindness, how you're so spontaneous and funny and welcoming and smart and helpful. How you still stuck with a guy like me, no matter how many times I acted like a doofus in front of you. And that's not yet even a quarter of the first part._

_If I could, then I would've been waiting for you at the clearing. But I can't, because I'm leaving tomorrow morning, as much as I don't want to. I'm desperately hoping that you'll get to read this before I go. I promise that we'll be seeing each other again. There's no date or time yet, but I swear we will. And I hope you're just as eager for that moment as I am. Maybe then I can show you the actual list._

_I love you._

_-Fang_

_P.S. Don't worry. I swear I made all of them at least a month ago. Ask Tess =P._

It was the cheesiest note I ever read in my whole life. And probably my past lives. But it was from Fang, and at the moment, that was what pretty much mattered. And to know that he liked me since freshman year and that he really was the one who gave me the rose? Not to mention that he sort of ended his letter the way I made my note. It was very sweet.

But really, was he actually waiting for me that morning? I hung my bag on one of the branches and took out my laptop. While it started up, I took out the first CD. On it were the words "FRESHMAN YEAR". I looked through the other three and saw that each one corresponded to a year in high school.

Okay. Slightly creepy, but it was way better than him watching me sleep or following me on my way home, in the way only a stalker could.

A tiny slip of paper was inside. Overall the first disk had five tracks and each title was a date. They were all dates I knew too well, and if I wasn't mistaken, all of them had something to do with both of us. Like every track had something to do with an event. Maybe like a theme song or something. Still slightly creepy, but not the type that would cause panic.

Once I had inserted the CD and it was recognized, different track titles appeared. The first one was entitled _Don't You_, the one I assumed was by Darren Criss, which was on the very first day of school.

I had to admit, Fang's voice wasn't the best. Sure he could be a one- man orchestra if he wanted, but his voice was in no way like Bono's. I confessed to laughing a couple of times, but I swore it was not in a very insulting way. He considered the chorus as the most important part, and I could hear the words _don't you want the way I feel for you?_ In my head over and over again.

Okay, that was a point clearly taken.

The next one was entitled _Out of My League_. I knew this song, since it was one of the many I sung during our lessons. But the date was on the Saturday he offered the aforementioned lessons to me. I'd say he was pretty shock to both see me and find out that I played a little guitar. The song's message was just as clear as the first one, though I still couldn't determine what the _out of my league _part was really about.

The third track was on the date of our first lesson, with the title _Just the Girl_. I remembered how I saw him fighting with Dylan over the nerd the guy was bullying. Pretty heroic of him, and it was fun to beat the pulp out of Dylan who had harassed me a few hours before that. I assumed it was what he was talking about with the line _she's cold and she's cruel but she knows what she's doing_.

I had no idea what the next track was about, actually. It was on the date we had the guitar lesson after I slightly offended Fang by asking about his private life (we _were_ sort of strangers back then) and its title was _Last October_. The October part was the only thing I pretty much understood.

The last track, which had the title _You and Me_ matched up with the date we performed in front of our music class. The part that really stood out was the chorus: _it's you and me, and no other people, and I don't know why I can't take my eyes off of you_. It was pretty much how I felt after we sang; it was like it was just the two of us.

Well, that was the end of freshman year. But it was the beginning of the realization that Fang really did like me as much as I like him.

* * *

><p>The second CD, marked "SOPHOMORE YEAR", also had five tracks. I thought back to the second year in high school, when I was officially back to square one, and I had just unintentionally landed the female lead in <em>Aladdin<em>. There were the dance and astronomy lessons, and then the after party where he was wet _and_ shirtless. That year was a bit crazy, if you asked me.

The first track, _Heels Over Head_, was on the day of try- outs for _Aladdin_. That wasn't exactly the first time he saw me that year. And my audition was nothing special. No standing ovations or even a hint of applause (I'd say that everyone was still shocked that I could sing, even if it was a bit), and even though no one knew yet, it was weird having him play background to his best friend and her future girlfriend whom he (the guy playing the background) likes.

The next one was a song I didn't recognize, _What Does It Take_. I had to do a bit of thinking for the date, but I was able to recall that it was that one time he told me "he had an irrational fear of beards" (I still refuse to believe it. We haven't had the opportunity to come across someone bearded to verify that. And I forgot to ask Iggy and Tess). Then we quoted a bunch of people, and I remembered that all of it was about love. On the downside, he completely forgot that he gave me his number about a year ago. But still, it was quite a romantic moment if I do say so myself.

But in no way was that one part any sign of redemption, though I'd be mistaken later on.

_The One I'm Waiting For_. It was familiar, and if I wasn't mistaken, it was sung by Relient K. Dated on the night of our little astronomy lesson. That was way back when I thought that one hug was the farthest I'd come to contact with him. Boy was I totally wrong.

The funny thing is, I'm pretty sure that was the only time we hugged. You could count in the one we shared yesterday, but it was a more of a sad hug. And the lyrics, particularly, _I'm still waiting for you to be the one I'm waiting for_ made me wonder a bit. But it did make sense, since it was still probably one of those times he was still figuring out if I was shallow or something.

The fourth track, _Honey and the Bee_ was supposed to correspond to _Aladdin_'s opening night. To be completely honest, I have no idea what this was about. Maybe it had to do with the part where I was about to do _A Whole New World_ and he was going to kiss me on the cheek but at the last second I unintentionally turned my head and it ended up being on my lips. Maybe I should ask what it meant.

For one thing, it was very stupid of me to not try and call him again when I got to the clearing and saw the tiny heart. But when I dialled his number, no one was still answering it. I put it on alarm every seven minutes so I would remember every time and went back to the last track, _Deer In the Headlights_, on the same night.

Once again, I had no idea what it was about. But I saw that beside the date in tiny handwriting was the time. It was a rough estimate of the after party. And with the words _got the sense I was not her type by the black eye and bloody nose_, it gave me the hint that it was about Dylan, when he showed up and tried to harass me again. Not to mention, the night of the wet and shirtless Fang. Even though the pool pushing was a bit over- the- top and cliché for a fighting technique, it was one of those moments I appreciated since it was also proof that he was into me. Also, there was another kiss the day after that, but it was intended for the cheek, and stayed on the cheek.

To summarize the first two years, I'd say Fang _was_ confused. He did, after all, mention that he didn't want to be the kind of guy that liked a girl for her looks. But seeing as he thinks I'm nice and funny and all that, he must be either delusional or a real gentleman.

Please, please, _please_ don't be delusional.

* * *

><p>Looking back at Fang's song choice for the past two years, well, they weren't really that bad, though some I didn't understand. But that wasn't the reason I was a bit tempted not to insert the next CD. Junior year was when things got really crazy, and it made sophomore year a bit dull.<p>

This time there were only four tracks. Two of them during the school year, and the other two during the summer.

For the first one, the date was _very_ unforgettable. Hint: it involved the tree at the clearing, the two of us, and a rainy night. The first time he kissed me for real. Not to mention, the first time he also ruined the previous moment by being sorry, and also the first time I ruined it by not saying that I wasn't. The song was _Secret Valentine_ by We The Kings, which I'm pretty sure was also because of some references to the fact that it was the night and dark and all that. And maybe because that it's a couple's song or something like that, too.

The second song was also on another unforgettable night. But then, all of the moments the songs corresponded to were unforgettable, so I could sort of see Fang's point there by choosing those dates, besides the fact that something involving the two of us would happen. This time, it was _Six Feet Under the Stars_, which somehow reminded me of a wild party. But now it referenced a party, the party where Fang and a dozen other people found out that I am not a good dancer, especially when my drink is spiked. And I'm pretty sure that's when Fang found out that I might like him too, since I kissed him. Maybe the "might" wouldn't have been there if I wasn't intoxicated or anything, but, oh well.

The next one was another unfamiliar, titled _Your Melody_. It was on the day the four of us went to the beach, and I was already "officially" dubbed as Iggy's "girlfriend". Going back to that part, back then I thought that maybe things were different with Fang now since there wasn't any awkwardness. And the part where we played soccer and Fang fell on top of me with his back facing me was further proof that since I'm with his bestfriend (and everyone knows it's "bros before hoes"), there would be no "action" between us.

Once again, I got that one wrong.

But hey, the first line with the part about the girl with the headphones was somewhat a reference to our road trip. Just remove the next line about the said girl singing to every song.

The last track, was the day after that, when we made a deal not to tell Iggy anything about the kiss. Still, did Iggy already know? Did he secretly see us when we were in the water or did he overhear our conversation? Or did Fang cave in? Besides that, I was also once again confused by the song choice, _I Must Be Dreaming_. Maybe it was the line _and she watches the sun, but she's the only one I've got my eyes on_. But I can never be so sure. I should ask him about that, too. And maybe I should add why other moments, like those involved with Cyrano de Bergerac were not included.

Back to the asking part, my alarm had rung twice, but no one still answered.

* * *

><p>Senior year, surprisingly, had only three tracks. And all three only matched up with dates within the past month, which was when we made actual contact with each other. At first I was a bit curious on why he didn't add up the stuff that had happened a couple of weeks before school started and he had an accident, because that was playing over and over in my head. But then I also remembered that after that I let him down in a not so gentle way, and I understood why.<p>

The first track was about the talk we had, when I was supposed to tell him that I was in love with him and do something spontaneous. Sadly, neither of the two was done. The song, _She_, was about words and talking and all that stuff. The thing that made me confused the most were the lines _and I couldn't speak, I couldn't breathe to save my life, all of my chances swim like sinking ships, this time it's it I'll drown or make her mine_. By confused, I didn't mean in the way that I didn't understood why he chose that song, but by what the song was saying. It sounded like he was supposed to say something, too.

What if we were both planning on telling each other how we felt that time, and it didn't happen for both of us?

What if he was supposed to tell me, but when I was going to tell him, I chickened out and told him I'd see him at school, which he interpreted as a "just friends" thing?

What if he didn't want to tell me once we found out that we'd both be moving?

Somehow, the song was screaming _BINGO_ in my head.

The next one was an easy match. _Chasing Cars _by Snow Patrol, our last dance at Prom. I had to admit that the song had a little sentimental value to me too, and I may or may have not fallen asleep listening to the said tune on repeat until I knew the lyrics by heart. I wondered if Fang was still mustering up the courage to ask me to dance back then. I mean, if I were in his place, assuming that my theories were correct, I would've probably hidden all night. But he was pretty courageous, with him following me as I watched Dylan and for him to ask me to a dance even if we didn't say much to each other before that. When Prom was over and I was asking him to "sober up" with me, I was mainly thinking if I could get crazy and then blurt it out so it would be all over and we both could possibly be happy together. But no, my mind went into "mysterious mode" and I ended up saying stuff that might've lead him on. Even if I wasn't leading him on.

And that kiss? All of me was hoping that it wasn't going to be our last.

The very last track was just yesterday. But it also had the time, and it was very early, a few minutes after we went our separate ways home. I could also tell by the way the track sounded; it didn't sound as clear as the previous ones, like it was rushed. It was still beautiful, though, a cover of _I Won't Give Up_ by Jason Mraz. Like maybe there was also that tiny ember in him hoping that there would be an "us", like the one I had.

When the song ended, I wanted to repeat the whole thing. But I had priorities and the first one was to call Fang. I once again redialed his number and prayed that he was finally awake.

* * *

><p><em>Ring. Ring. Ring.<em>

Finally, someone picked up.

"Hello?"

But it wasn't Fang.

"Tess?"

"Jeez, Max, do you what time it is?"

"Where's Fang?"

"I don't know. Yesterday he asked me to hold on to his phone, and I guess he forgot to get it."

I remembered how Fang told me to ask Tess about the CDs, as proof that he was no stalker and that all songs were recorded recently. "Hey, Tess, can we meet up at Auntie Marie's? In five minutes?"

"What? Why?"

"It's about Fang."

"I'll be there." She said, and then hung up.

* * *

><p>"Well, Max, you look just as fresh as I am." Tess said as she sat down across me.<p>

"Slept in yesterday's clothes?"

"Totally. So, what's it about?"

Without saying anything, I took out the box with the lid facing her so she could read the "For Max".

Her eyes went wide and she grinned. She really did know about this. "You have all three?"

"There are four in it."

She did a little squeal and started explaining. About a month ago, Tess and Iggy uncovered Fang's secret: he liked me. And so they started making plans, around the time Nudge, Ella, and Angel also started plotting. The CDs were one of the many measures they were willing to force Fang to do, but was cut when I found Fang's rose in my locker and thought it was a practical joke. She never even knew that he continued it, and thought that he threw it away.

"You do know that both of you have been like this for four years straight? That both of you liked each other but didn't know it?"

"Yeah. We've been pretty foolish, huh? And how did you know?"

"Well, it's sort of a cool story to tell. And the two of us teamed up a bit with Nudge, Angel and Ella. Especially during Prom."

"Oh. So, do you know where Fang is?"

"I don't, really. But I'm pretty sure he's-"

As if on cue, Fang's phone rang.

"Hello? Yes, it's with me. Really? Okay, I'll return it soon. Bye."

"Was that him?"

She shook her head. "It was his dad. Fang… he left early in the morning. He promised to go along with his cousin to check out where he'd be staying next year, so…"

I nodded. "Cool."

She smiled. "Don't worry. When I get my hands on him I'll force him to call you the next second."

* * *

><p><strong>NOTICE: Each song corresponds to a chapter. What happened in the aforementioned chapters was pretty much explained here. The format is song-artist-chapter#<strong>

**Don't You-Darren Criss-Pretty much the theme song**

**Out of My League-Stephen Speaks-6**

**Just the Girl-The Click Five-7**

**Last October-Green River Ordinance-9 **

**You and Me-Lifehouse-10 **

**Heels Over Head-Boys Like Girls-13 **

**What Does It Take-Dave Days-16 **

**The One I'm Waiting For-Relient K-18 **

**Honey And the Bee-Owl City-19 **

****Deer In the Headlights-Owl City-20****

******Secret Valentine-We The Kings-23******

********Six Feet Under the Stars-All Time Low-25********

**********Your Melody-Dave Days-27**********

************I Must Be Dreaming-The Maine-28************

**************She (For Liz)-Parachute-35**************

****************Chasing Cars-Snow Patrol-36****************

******************I Won't Give Up-Jason Mraz-37******************

**If you feel that any song (or any part of the chapter) should be changed, tell me in your review and I'll see if I can fix it. (Sorry if this chapter was a bit… crazy. I was a bit out of my mind in the past week.)**

**So, yeah, one last chapter.**

**How do you think it's going to end?**

**Review? =D**


	39. Epilogue

**This is it.**

**DISCLAIMER: Thirty-nine chapters, and I still don't own MR. Sigh.**

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><p><em><strong>Two Years Later<strong>_

After that morning, I started counting time.

Twenty days. I had twenty days left to make things different, and back then, right after I met up with Tess, I started wondering, would something happen between Fang and I on those twenty days? Would he come back here so we could settle things? Would that work, even if I was still going to leave?

Would twenty days be enough?

A week later, Tess told me that his parents went to Tennessee to visit him and to return his phone. I started spending every waking hour alone dialling his number and waiting for him to pick up. But he didn't. Tess tried to call him on her phone, but when she went around to mentioning me he didn't say much. It happened over and over again until I left for Paris. And when I arrived, I tried calling him again. Still no answer. I gave up after a few weeks, since I already sounded too desperate. I distracted myself by trying to improve my French and exploring the city and studying.

But that didn't hide the fact that he didn't answer my calls.

Later on, Iggy told me that he had changed his number, with no reason having to do with me whatsoever. He gave it, but I had already given up on calling, so instead I made an attempt to text him. He replied, and we made regular conversation. Actually, it wasn't that regular because of the time zone differences. Like if Fang had nothing to do in the afternoon, I might've been in class. If I had time to kill in the evening, he might've been busy working on something. But there were times that either of us stayed up late or shoved aside homework to text each other for an hour or two. We never made calls. And we never talked about what happened.

At first, I was itching to insert it into conversation, and then I got a bit mad when Fang refused to make any reference to it. But I understood what he really meant. A topic like that was one that just couldn't be done over phone calls and chats and texts and Skype. It had to be in person.

So when were we going to see each other again?

The summer after my first year in college, I was recommended for a program that my mom even insisted that I stay there and attend. I heard that Fang went back, of course, and we continued texting each other. But now? I have a flight booked. Although that didn't necessarily change anything between us.

I thought back to that one time two years ago, when Nudge, Ella and Angel came up with crazy plans to get Fang and me together. Nudge had asked me all about what happened when I let him down in a not so gentle way. When she asked me on why I didn't tell him that we could still be together. I still remembered what I told her:

_What if in those three months, something happened- not just to him, but to me, too- that would change everything?_

Maybe a lot might have happened, but then I'll never know. My guess is that Fang still liked me then. Maybe he was willing to wait those three months, probably like he waited for four years to tell me he loved me. But this was different. Two years in my book is really long. And if a lot could happen in three months, then everything might've changed in two years.

I'll never know for sure.

* * *

><p>"Ladies and gentlemen, you may now unfasten your seatbelts. But for your safety, we recommend that you not undo them and keep them loose."<p>

I looked out the window and saw the bright lights of Paris grow smaller in the distance. It was night time and the cabin was dimmed. A few reading lights were turned on, but the rest of the passengers were getting their rest, preparing for the jet lag that was to come when they arrived in the States. I was trying to be part of the latter, yet I couldn't put my mind to rest.

Honestly, there wasn't much to worry about. All the stuff I had bought for my friends and family back home were safely stored somewhere. The Gasman, who was going to spend his summer with dad, also asked me to send over some things for him. Those where also stored away. I triple checked everything before I left, and I didn't forget anything important.

The only thing on my mind was Fang, but he took up more space than was available.

What was I going to do when I got back? Would I just wait for some chance that I would bump into him? Would I invite him for some coffee and more catching up? Would _he_ be inviting me for coffee and catching up? Would he ignore me? Would he even know I was already here? I didn't even have any idea if he got back from Tennessee yet. For all I know, he was planning to spend the summer with his friends far away or something.

In my mind, I made scripts, planning out things I might eventually forget for the next time I encountered him. When a couple tells each other their feelings, and then suddenly moves apart, it's not like they'll be all over each other when they reunite. Okay, maybe they will, but that would be more likely in the case that they hadn't had contact with each other. With the two of us, you couldn't exactly apply the "absence makes the heart grow fonder" thing. We were like two friends who had a fling and were trying to forget about it, only without the latter, I guess.

I tried staring out the window again. This time, the lights were completely out of sight, and the plane was among the clouds, blocking any possible view of anything, except more clouds. I considered reading a book, but I didn't want to possibly disturb the woman sleeping beside me. So I inclined my seat, and closed my eyes, hoping that would be enough to will myself to sleep.

But that didn't happen. That didn't happen at all.

"Max?"

I knew the voice well enough to not turn my head. But I wanted to find out if it was real, so I did. And it was. There he was, standing at the aisle directly at my row, silhouetted by the dimmed lights.

Yes I was expecting to see Fang soon. But not this soon. Suddenly, my words long ago came flooding back into my head.

_What if in those three months, something happened- not just to him, but to me, too- that would change everything?_

But when I looked at him, it seemed like nothing happened to him, too. His face was a picture of surprise and delight, like a kid opening presents on his birthday or Christmas.

"Max? Max, is that you?" He asked again.

"What are you doing here?" I whispered softly, the same kind of emotion flowing through my veins.

"Wait, you're coming home?" This time he smiled, a little hope radiating through him.

Yep, things _probably_ didn't change between us.

"I'll be spending my vacation there. What are you doing here? I mean, were you in Paris? What were you doing there?"

His eyes met mine, and I knew he wasn't kidding when he said, "I was looking for you."

* * *

><p>After ten minutes of attempting to wake up the woman beside me, and another fifteen getting her to switch seats with Fang (he used the long lost lover excuse. Actually, it does sort of have a huge ring of truth to it), I got to sit beside the one person I had been thinking of, for the rest of the flight. And it was a <em>really<em> long one.

What are the chances?

The way Fang had looked at me, well, he looked really happy, but at the same time he also looked like he'd seen a ghost. He may have hunted me down in Paris, but it was obvious that he least expected to see me on the same plane. In fact, I'm pretty sure he wasn't thinking of seeing me on any plane. After all, did I not go back the previous summer?

"So, we meet on a plane." I started.

"I never did think of that as a possibility." He said.

"You we're really looking for me?"

"School ended early, and I thought about going to Paris, since we haven't talked to each other in a long time. And by talk, I meant having a conversation on the phone, too."

"You could've just called me."

"But we never call each other. And it's summer."

I sensed the conversation was quickly steering towards those twenty days I had and after, when I kept dialing his number. "So, catching up?"

He nodded. "How's school for you, anyway?"

"Well, I never told you about why I didn't come home last summer. That was because there was this program for photography and one of my professors recommended it. Both my parents insisted that I attend. How about you?"

"Well, you're I switched my major from Math to English."

Him writing words. Me taking pictures. It was a definite match. "Minor in Music?"

He nodded again. "What're your plans this summer?"

"Catching up with the rest. Not everyone can give me a slot in their busy schedule, like you would."

"Even a call? That would've taken minutes."

"That's what I told them."

"You, know, you never called me."

Well, he finally opened up. "And you never answered my calls, either."

"You didn't call me, so I couldn't answer them in the first place."

"No. What I'm talking about is _before_ I left. And several days after that. You do know that I called you a lot but you never answered them."

He was silent, but he looked at me with a face that said there would be an explanation.

"Give me a good reason." I said.

He took a deep breath. "It was because I didn't want to make things more awkward."

"How?"

"Because we were a thousand miles from each other. If it was the beginning of a good thing, then I was too afraid to lose it over a long distance relationship. I didn't want our conversations to get more awkward with each passing day." His voice wasn't loud, and he didn't sound mad. Maybe 'scared' was the right word. Like he didn't want to get dumped by me again. And I didn't.

"But I wouldn't want it to end up like that. I don't care if a lot of these long distance relationships don't work. I mean, didn't _I_ tell you I was in love with you even if I knew I was going to leave? And I don't care whether our conversation would be awkward or not." I replied. And in a quieter voice, I added, "I wouldn't want to forget your voice, even if I have the CDs."

"I'm really, really sorry if I never answered your calls or tried calling you. I swear I am."

"I missed you."

He looked at me like he was about to kiss me. "I missed you, too."

But he didn't.

And then we spent the rest of the flight in silence.

* * *

><p>Nudge, Ella, and Angel weren't that hard to spot. And I say that because they were the only ones in the terminal who couldn't contain their excitement and had resorted to jumping up and down. Not to mention, the huge sign with "Maximum Ride" written in hot pink marker was <em>very<em> hard to ignore. As soon as we had three feet left between us, Nudge ran and hugged me, possibly lifting me an inch or two off the ground.

"Max, Max, Max, Max!" Nudge squealed, once we traded hugs and hi's and I missed you's.

"Well, you guys changed a lot." I said, eyeing them up and down. Nudge was tanner, but not the type that would be classified under the color orange. It was more of a healthy bronze glow. Plus, her hair was straighter. Angel was taller and her skin glowed, too. Ella's hair was now straight, decorated with streaks of assorted colors.

"Where's mom, by the way?" I asked.

"Oh, we let her rest." Angel said. I quickly did the math. Since my flight had left close to midnight Paris time, and took at least seven hours, then it was still too early to be actually bustling with activity when I arrived. "By the way, she told us to tell you there's going to be a sort of dinner party tonight."

"Really?" I asked as we made our way out to the parking lot. "Who's invited?"

"The 'gang', of course." Ella said. 'Gang' usually referred to the four of us plus Iggy, Fang, and Tess. "And the parents."

"Anyone serving?"

"If I'm not mistaken, Dr. M asked Iggy to help her a bit."

"Hey, I heard Fang just got back from Tennessee about the same time as your plane landed." Nudge said, giving me a knowing look. Little did she know, Fang did not get back from Tennessee, nor did he arrive about the same time my plane landed.

"Yeah, sure." I said, trying to act nonchalant.

* * *

><p>I was still wide awake when we got to my house, but I tried my best to fall asleep and get along with the time zone. Fortunately, I did, and I woke up late, which was my usual schedule. I helped my mom set up the arrangements and go through ingredients.<p>

There was neither call nor a text from Fang.

"Would you get that Max?" My mom asked when someone knocked. Seeing that she was busy measuring ingredients, I opened the door and was face to face (face to chest? Face to neck? Face to chin?) with Iggy.

"Hey!" He exclaimed, and pulled me into a friendly, platonic hug. "We missed you."

If only I knew that it actually meant "We missed putting you and Fang together."

"Well, I couldn't survive without your cooking, either." I said, and let him in. I was on table setting duty while they cooked in the kitchen. After finishing, we all got ready and mom welcomed our guests. Fang's family was the last to arrive.

"Hello, Fang." My mother greeted. "It was a long drive back, huh?" She asked, noticing his eye bags. He nodded. I glanced at Iggy and Tess to see if they gave Fang knowing looks, but they didn't.

Was it possible that he went to Paris without anyone knowing, and it was just to look for me?

Polite conversation took over the dinner, with the parents asking us all about our college life. The seven of us didn't get much time to talk on our own, even after the meal when we all sat down at the living room to rest for a bit.

At one point, Fang stood up. "Um, is it okay if I leave early? I think I should catch up on my sleep." He said. Her mom said something related to approval, and he glanced briefly at me before leaving. Was he trying to send me a message?

My phone vibrated, signaling a text. It was from Fang:

_I think you know where I'll be_ _later._

* * *

><p><em><strong>Midnight<strong>_

In contrast with my assumption, Fang was not at the big tree in the middle of the clearing when I arrived.

I remembered the last time I had been here. I was listening to a CD from Fang, who I had hoped was still there, waiting for me. But he wasn't. All he left was a post- it with a tiny heart.

So I'm pretty much hoping that he'd give a bit more than that this time.

I carefully scaled the tree and sat down on a branch, the same one where we first kissed and the same one where I found out that he felt the same way as I did. What was going to happen tonight?

"What are you doing there?" I heard someone ask from below. Of course, it was Fang.

"I couldn't sleep, what are you doing here?" I asked, and by the look on his face, I knew that he remembered how we both ended up in this tree the first time.

"I couldn't sleep, either. Care for some company?"

Like he did three years ago, I shrugged, smiled, and said, "Why not?" Pretty soon, he was right beside me, staring at the night sky.

"You know, I listened to your CDs on this very branch." I started.

He looked at me with a small smile. "You liked them, didn't you?"

"Well, give me a reason not to."

His smile slightly grew, and I went on.

"You know, I've been thinking about what you said. You were sort of right. I wouldn't want something this good to end just because we're a thousand miles apart."

"But if we tried this time?" He asked.

I shrugged. "Maybe."

I looked at Fang, and thought of everything we had done and everything he had done for me in those four years. How he offered me guitar lessons because he was in love with me. How he performed with me in front of the class because he was in love with me. How he taught me how to dance better because he was in love with me. How he beat up Dylan, who was harassing me, because he was in love with me. How he was willing to play Christian for a bit, because he was in love with me. How he kissed me in the tree, and in the park bench, and in the water, and in the hospital, and in the diner because he was in love with me. How he made CDs and left me a note because he was in love with me.

But was he still in love with me? I never got to ask that. Was that question out of curiosity, or was it because he still loved me?

"Are you still in love with me?" I suddenly asked. I swear I did not intend to say that out loud.

He looked at me, his expression serious.

"Are you still in love with me? Because I'm still in love with you."

He grinned. "I am. Very much."

And then we kissed.

This was different. Unlike the ones we had during high school, Fang wasn't leaning towards me just standing there, nor was I leaning toward him while he just stood there. We both moved forward, meeting each other. And when we broke apart, we weren't embarrassed or shocked. We just stood there, gasping for breath, grinning at each other.

"I have something to give to you." He said, and dug around in his pockets before handing me a worn piece of paper folded so many times you that it was easier to rip apart.

"It's the actual list." He said when I looked at it quizzically.

I remembered one of the last things Fang told me in his letter: _Maybe then I can show you the actual list._

And there it was. Fang's list of reason's why he loved me.

I smiled. "Maybe I'll make one for you, too."

#

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><p><strong>WHO WANTS TO SEE THE LIST?<strong>

**(Can this get to 600?)**

**To be honest, I had a though time writing this. Because it was so fun doing this that I didn't want it to end.**

**(That's what she said. Or not.)**

**(And you know, I can still change some parts if you're not happy with it.)**

**Thank you to everyone. Thank you to Xx-Twitch-xX, who helped me get through several parts of this story. To TheCatWithBrownEyes for helping me with Part 2. To MPHknows for being more than glad to allow me to use one of her OCs. To the people like . and desperatelyobvious and Sierra156 who helped me swim through the sea that is writer's block. To everyone who answered my questions. TO EVERYONE WHO READ AND REVIEWED AND PUT THIS STORY ON THEIR FAVORITES AND STORY ALERTS AND TO EVERYONE WHO PUT ME IN THEIR FAVORITE AUTHORS AND AUTHOR ALERTS.**

**(Cut me some slack on the dramatic acknowledgements. It's my first story, and I always sort of wanted to do something like this.)**

***Bows***

***Curtain Closes***


	40. The List

**Okay. So, it's what the title says, right?**

**I know some didn't want to see the list, so to make it easier, you'll get the option to go to the link below. And it might explain why I took a bit on the list.**

i47(dot)tinypic(dot)com/13ynrip(dot)jpg

**NOTES:**

***Can we just imagine that it's not the whole list? Like that's a portion or something? Because it wasn't as long as I expected.**

***About the changing "handwriting", that was because I had the idea that he didn't write the whole thing in one sitting, like he wrote it in sections. And I'm pretty sure you can't have VERY identical handwriting all the time (Right?). I tried to choose the ones that looked as similar as possible.**

***If you have any suggestions about what to change (or maybe add) to the list, maybe it's not too late.**

***Thank you to xXxFoolishYoungAndInLoveXxX for allowing me to use some of the items in the list from "It's In My Bag".**

**Also, SHAMELESS ADVERTISING:**

**Even if it's a bit fast, I'll be starting another story in less than a week (That is because I'm rushing to get some ideas out there as early as possible so it can be original). And, well, ya know, hoping for support and all that stuff.**

**(DO YOU SEE WHY I CALLED IT ****SHAMELESS**** ADVERTISING?)**

**I shall return.**


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